psychology psychopathology

Question 1

what are the 4 definitions of abnormality

Answer 1

statistical infrequency- when an individual has a less common characteristic

deviation from social norms
- behaviour that is different from the accepted standards withing society

failure to function adequetely - occurs when someone is unable to cope with day to day living

devaiation from ideal mental health- not meeting criteria for ideal mental health

Question 2

what are the two treatments for phobias?

Answer 2

systematic desensitization is gradually reducing phobic anxiety through classical conditioning (learn to relax in the presence of the phobic stimulus)

flooding - immediate exposure to phobic stimulus, fightening with not build up

Question 3

what are the 3 processes involved in systematic desensitization

Answer 3

anxiety heirarchy made by patient and therapist, a list of situations concerning the phobia from least to most frightening

relaxation - therapist teaches patient to relax as deeply as possible e.g through breathing excercises

exposure, patient is exposed to the phobic stimulus while in a relaxed state across multiple sessions from the bottom of the heiracrhy moving up

Question 4

what does flooding lead to

Answer 4

extinction - we learn the phobic stimulus is harmless if we are unable to avoid it

Question 5

evaluation of phobia treatments

Answer 5

Behavioural treatments dont treat the underlying cause of phobias (irrational beliefs) but just symptoms like panic so cbt may be better as it targets the underlying cause.

research supporting sd.gilroy followed 42 patients treated for arachnophobia with 3 sessions of sd compared to a control group with no exposure and just relaxation.

a strength of flooding is its quick and cost effective. this is due to the immediate exposure to the stimulus so it can take up to one session. patients can be free of their symptoms asap

Question 6

what is the two process model

Answer 6

this states that phobias are aquired through classical conditioning and maintained through operant conditioning.

Question 7

explain classical conditioning of phobias with the white rat

Answer 7

loud noise (ucs) -> fear response (ucr)

white rat + loud noise (ns + ucs) -> fear response (ucr)

white rate (cs) -> fear response (cr)

Question 8

how are phobias negatively reinforced

Answer 8

The behaviour is strengthened because the unpleasant consequence is removed.

we continue to maintain a behaviour (running away) in order to avoid the negative consequence (phobic stimulus)

Question 9

what does biological preparedness suggest

Answer 9

innate predisposition to aquire certain fears (e.g heights and deadly animals) which will increase our chances of survival

Question 10

evaluations of phobia explanations

Answer 10

two process model cant explain all phobias. evolutionary phobias dont have to be learned through classical conditioning . outline biological preparedness. theres more to acquiring phobias than conditioning.

weakness is the behavioural approach to phobias doesnt explain cognitive
characteristics e.g selective attention and irrational beliefs. behaviourist approach doesnt consider the role of internal mental processes. cbt may be better

real life application to support behaviourist approach. watsona nd rayner taught little albert a phobia of white rats by repeatedly pairing a loud bang noise with the neutral stimulus of the white rat which then became associated with the fear of the loud bang

Question 11

behavioural characteristics of phobias

Answer 11

avoidance

panic

endurance

Question 12

emotional characteristics of phobias

Answer 12

anxiety and fear

Question 13

cognitive characteristics of phobia

Answer 13

cognitive distortions

irrational beliefs

selective attention to the phobic stimulus

Question 14

behavioural symptoms of ocd

Answer 14

compulsions and avoidance

Question 14

emotional symptoms of ocd

Answer 14

anxiety, distress, depression, guilt and disgust

Question 15

cognitive symptoms of ocd

Answer 15

obsessive thoughts e.g catastrophic thinking, hyper vigilance, insight into excessive anxiety and thoughts

Question 16

aol for the genetic explanation

Answer 16

individuals inherit specific genes from their parents that make them vulnerable to the onset of ocd

polygenic - taylor found up to 230 genes involved

COMT gene is common in ocd patients. low activity of COMT gene means high dopamine

sert gene affects the transport of serotonin which causes low levels of serotonin linked with ocd

Question 17

evaluation of the genetic explanation

Answer 17

theres support for genetic. nestadl et al in their twin studies found that 68% of mz twins shared ocd whilst only 31% of dz twins did. closer related means more chance of ocd.however the mz twins could be more similar in terms of shared environments so env. factors may play more of a role, we cant condclude that its genes.

environmental risk factors may increase risk of ocd. cromer et al found more than half patients had a severe traumatic event so ocd cant be entirely genetic and theres a greater risk if theres an environmental trigger

Question 18

neural explanation of ocd

Answer 18

people with ocd have an abnormal frontal lobe. the caudate nucleus thats supposed to suppress signals from the orbifrontal cotex is sadly damaged ! this damage is also associated with impaired decision making

now when the ofc sends signals to the hypothalamus to worry about things these minor worries arent suppressed and theyre alerted

Question 19

evaluations of the neural explanation

Answer 19

theres an issue with cause and effect. explanation says cause for ocd is the abnormal functioning of the lateral frontal lobe causes impaired decision making. however what if the ocd is what cause the abnormal functioning of lfl

real life application. some anti depressants work by increasing serotonin. Drugs help reduce ocd symptoms proving low levels of serotonin is included in ocd. however lots of people with ocd also have depression so these low serotonin levels could be that they have depression aswell

Question 20

Explain the process of the neurotransmitter serotonin and how do ssris stop reuptake

Answer 20

1. serotonin is released from the presynaptic neuron and diffuses across the synapse
2. neurotransmitters chemically convey signals from pre to post synaptic neuron
3. re absorbed by the presynaptic neuron where its broken down and reused. this is re uptake
4. SSRI’s stop reuptake by increasing levels in the synapse and continuously stimulating post synaptic neuron.

Question 21

ao3 evaluation for the treatment of ocd

Answer 21

Drug therapy is supported by research. Soomro et al found that SSRI’s were more effective than placebos. however they found the best results when ssris were combined with cbt. however evidence may be biased by drug companies who dont publish all of their answers.

drugs are quick and cheap. ssri perscription is £9 when cbt is £60 a week. ssris are non disruptive to the patients daily life cbt requires time in a therapy session. however once they stop taking ssris theyre more likely to relapse so its not a long term solution

Question 22

behavioural symptoms of depression

Answer 22

over and under eating

reduced activity levels

disruption of sleep

insomnia

agression and self harm e.g cutting and irritable

Question 23

cognitive symptoms of depression

Answer 23

poor concerntration

dwelling on the negative

absolutist thinking

Question 23

emotional symptoms of depression

Answer 23

belief of being worthless hopeless and inadequete

low self esteem

anger/lowered mood

Question 24

ao1 explain becks cognitive theory of depression

Answer 24

beck believes people are vulnerable to depression dt:

faulty information processing :only focusing on the bad side of things

negative self schemas: interpret everything about themselves badly

negative triad:
negative views about the world
negative views about the future
negative views about oneself

Question 25

what does cbt and Rebt do?

Answer 25

cbt identifies the irrational belief and then challenges it

rebt is a form of cbt
abc + de for dispute and effect

aim: break the link between negative life event and depression

logical argument - dispute using facts

empirical argument - dispute if theres evidence to back up their beliefs

Question 25

ao1 explain ellis’ abc model

Answer 25

A- activating event e.g poor grade

B - beliefs e.g i will never succeed

c- consequences e.g feeling worthless and depressed

musturbation - belief we must always succeed
utopianism - belief life should always be fair

Question 26

ao3 evaluation of becks cognitive theory of depression

Answer 26

evidence to support.grazioli and terry assessed 65 pregnant women for cognitive vulnerability and depression before and after birth. They found that those women judged to have been high in cognitive vulnerability were more likely to suffer post-natal depression. however not representative one group of women.

doesnt explain all depression. some patients have cotard syndrome and hallucinations. becks theory is incomplete as it cant explain these symptoms like a biological explantation can.

Question 27

ao3 evaluation for ellis abc model

Answer 27

partial explanation. it states depression is caused by an activating agent but that only explains reactive symptoms of depression in response to an event when its not always clear what lead to someones depression at a given time

beck and ellis contributed to treatments for depression. cbt is identifying and challenging irrational thoughts. rebt utilises abc adding dispute and effect to breakdown evens and thoughts. march found that Cbt was effective at treating symptoms and risk of relapse at 81%

Question 28

A01 depression treatments

Answer 28

cognitive therapy uses thought catching and challenging it.

reality testing : clients have to gather evidence e.g when they enjoyed an event or recieved praise and compare evidence with thought to t=see if they match. This is used to prove clients wrong.

rebt

behavioural activation : activities to improve mood

Question 29

A03 evaluations of treatment of depression

Answer 29

Cbt takes time and is expensive. average of 12 sessions and £60 per session and they may have to miss work to attend so ssris at £9 may be better. However cbt is cheaper in the long term as its done in 12 sessions but drugs are forever.

cbt may not be effective for sever and disabled cases. It requires complex rational thinking and with a lack of motivation this may be hard to engage with making them feel more hopeless.

cbt has economic impacts. depression is costly to the economy through absenteeism , low productivity and unemployment. In the long term Cbt decreases risk of relapse and helps people go back to work.

Question 30

what are the a03 evaluations of statistical infrequency

Answer 30

doesnt distinguish between desiraable and undesirable behaviours. it suggests behaviour shown less often is abnormal but some abnormal behaviours are desirable like having an IQ over 150 though very few people do we would say its undesirable and some normal behaviours are undesirable like depression.

Real life application SI is used to assess the severity of symptoms e.g iq below 70 means intellectual disability.beck depression inventory a score of 30+ means sever depression

Question 31

a03 evaluations of deviation from social norms

Answer 31

incomplete definition. in uk hearing voices and hallucinating is unacceptable whereas it may be normal as in african cultures they believe they’re communicating with ancestors.its not universal

useful in clinical practice.recklessness, aggression, violating the rights of others. These signs of the disorder are all deviation from social norms. ​acts as a criteria for mental illeness

Question 32

a03 evaluation of deviation from ideal mental health

Answer 32

this is unrealistic. no one can master their environment everyday and not be insecure some days

not a universal definition because collectivstic cultures dont really value self actualization and autonomy thats mainly westeren cultures

Question 33

a03 evaluation for failure to function adequetely

Answer 33

this may be deviation from social norms. if a person doesnt live a normal life e.g hold down a job they may be abnormal however are they failing to function or deviating from social norms e.g not having a job or permanent life could be an alt lifestyle like new age travellers.

represents a threshold for professional help. most people carry on with life despite 25% of people having mental health problems this criterion allows people who cant function to get professional help as they need it the most.