Psychopathology Flashcards
1
Q
Psychopathology definition
A
The study of specific mental disorders which may be indicative of mental illness or psychological impairment
2
Q
What are the 4 ways we define abnormality?
A
Statistical infrequency
Deviation from social norms
Failure to function adequately
Deviation from ideal mental health
3
Q
Statistical infrequency definition
A
- extremely rare behaviours are deemed as abnormal
- mathematical method
4
Q
What is the mathematical element of statistical infrequency m?
A
- human attributes fall onto normal distributions within the population (average)
- the rest of the population fall symmetrically above and below this
5
Q
Deviation from social norms definition
A
Abnormality is when a behaviour doesn’t fit within the what is socially acceptable
6
Q
What does deviation from social norm depend on?
A
Culture
7
Q
Example of a deviation from social norm
A
Not queueing (UK)
Impoliteness
Laughing at a funeral
8
Q
Example of statistical infrequency
A
Lower or higher IQ than the average
9
Q
Failure to function adequately definition
A
Abnormal behaviour is when an individual can’t cope with everyday life
10
Q
Who defined the failure to function adequately?
A
Rosenhan and Seligman
11
Q
What are the seven sections that Rosenhan and Seligman split failure to function into?
A
Unpredictability Maladaptive behaviour Personal distress Irrationality Observer discomfort Violation of moral standards Unconventionality
12
Q
What is the way of measuring failure to function adequately?
A
Global assessment of function scale (GAF) (it includes the seven sections)
13
Q
Example of failure to function adequately
A
Schizophrenia
14
Q
Deviation from ideal mental health definition
A
Abnormality is defines as deviating from an ideal of positive mental health
15
Q
What is the case study for ideal mental health?
A
Jahoda’s (1953) criteria of ideal mental health
16
Q
What is Jahoda’s 6 criteria to be fulfilled for ideal mental health?
A
- positive attitude towards the self
- self actualisation (contentment)
- autonomy (independence)
- resistance to stress
- environmental mastery (can adapt to new situations)
- accurate perception of reality
17
Q
What does DSM stand for?
A
Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders
18
Q
Old DSM classification includes?
A
- homosexuality
- nymphomania (sex hunger)
- prapetomania (caused slaves to run away)
19
Q
New DSM classification
A
- depressive disorders
- anxiety disorders
- OCD and related disorders
- feeding and eating disorders
20
Q
Statistical infrequency strengths
A
-clinical assessment - real life application in intellectual disability disorder diagnosis - mental disorders compared to statistical norms - practical application
21
Q
Statistical infrequency limitation
A
- no way of defining desirable or undesirable abnormal behaviour- e.g high IQ = genius - need way of distinguishing between them
- disagreements about cut off points - e.g cut of points on not enough sleep = depression symptom - hard to define abnormality
- negative effects of a label - happy life = no benefit from being labelled abnormal e.g low IQ = still capable of working - negative effect on self-view
22
Q
Strength of deviation from social norms
A
-e.g genius = desirable but wouldn’t want to include in definition of abnormal behaviours - narcissism used to be abnormal but is now common e.g selfies - social norms more useful than statistical norms
23
Q
Limitation of deviation from social norms
A
- changing overtime e.g homosexuality not in DSM anymore as is now socially acceptable - too much reliance on abnormality definitions can lead to systematic abuse of human rights
- aren’t always clear - behaviours context - e.g few clothes on beach = normal but abnormal in formal gathering - social deviance on own cannot be completed abnormality definition
- social norms vary between community’s/ cultures - e.g hearing voices is normal in Africa - abnormality = culturally relative
24
Q
Strength of failure to function adequately
A
-acknowledges patients experience - useful for assessing abnormality
25
Limitations of failure to function adequately
- e.g depression = extra attention = rewarding/functional - fails to distinguish between dysfunction + function behaviours for individual
- needs someone to make judgement of adequate behaviour - personal distress = undesirable or people content with behaviour = undesirable for others
- deviation from social norms = failure to function adequately e.g. no job - doesn't account for people who choose to live this way - treating behaviours as failures = risk discrimination + limiting personal freedom
26
Strength of deviation from ideal mental health
- comprehensive - range of mental health criteria - covers most reasons for seeking mental health attention e.g. Jahoda's is good tool yo define mental health
27
Limitation of deviation from ideal mental health
- ideal mental health = specific to western European + north American cultures - Jahoda based off wester cultures ideas e.g. self actualisation can seem self indulgent in some places
- few people satisfy all of Jahoda's criteria = everyone is abnormal to a degree - don't know how many of criteria is absent before we define someone as abnormal
- ideal mental health suggests definition suggests mental is same as physical - physical = physical cause = easier diagnosis - mental = o physical cause = harder diagnosis - abnormality diagnosis varies for each
28
Behavioural approach definition
- Emphasises the role of learning in the acquisition of behaviour
- behaviour is explained in terms of what is observable
29
Classical conditioning definition
Learning by association
30
Operant conditioning definition
Learning through consequences
31
What does the two process model state?
Phobias are acquired by classical conditioning then continue because of operant conditioning
32
Little Albert phobia study
UCS - loud noise
UCR - crying
NS - before conditioning
CR - third response
33
Who did the little Albert study?
Watson + Rayner (1920)
34
Who proposed the two process model on phobias?
Mowrer
35
Two process model strength
-long term effect - implications for therapy e.g. exposed to feared stimulus - prevent avoidance = phobic behaviour not reinforced - practical application to therapy
36
Two process model limitations
- avoidance can be from feelings of safety - different phobias = different processes - Ost = traumatic happened but phobic has forgotten traumatic experience
- DiNardo et al - not everyone bitten by dog has a phobia of dogs - diathesis stress = genetic vulnerability for mental disorders - disorder manifested if triggered - need vulnerability for phobia
- biological preparedness = better than TTPM - phobia = easier from danger - fear = adaptive (Seligman 1971) - need biology as well as behaviour
37
What does the behavioural approach to treating phobias included?
- two process model
- systematic desensitisation
- flooding
38
Systematic desensitisation definition
- Used classical conditioning to reduce anxiety gradually
- aims to replace anxiety with relaxation (counter conditioning)
- reciprocal inhibition
39
Reciprocal inhibition
Relaxation preventing experience of fear
40
What are the 3 steps of systematic desensitisation?
Anxiety hierarchy
Relaxation
Exposure
41
Anxiety hierarchy definition
List of situation in order from least to most frightening determined by patient and therapist together
42
Relaxation definition
Therapist teaches patient how to relax
43
Exposure definition
Patient is exposed to phobic stimulus while in relaxed state
44
Flooding definition
Behavioural therapy where Immediate exposure to phobia stimulus occurs
45
Extinction definition
Individual doesn’t have option d avoidance so learns phobic stimulus is harmless
46
Strengths of systematic desensitisation
- effectiveness
- diverse range of patients
- acceptable to patients
- evidence (Gilroy et al 2003) - shows anxiety reduction + long lasting effect
- diverse patients = disability e.g. learning difficulties = hard for dome patients to understand flooding or engage in therapies - SD = more appropriate + easier to understand
- more popular - no degree of trauma + includes relaxation - popularity = low refusal rates + low dropping out rates
47
Weaknesses of systematic desensitisation
- time consuming= expensive
- symptom substitution - address symptoms not the cause of underlying anxiety
- evolutionary component - not useful in phobias with these e.g. shakes/ height / dark
48
Strengths of flooding
-Cost effective - less time - free of symptoms sooner
49
Flooding weaknesses
- Less effective for social phobias due to cognitive aspects - need help with anxiety as well as unpleasant thoughts - may benefit more from cog therapies which tackle irrational thinking
- Traumatic - still ethical but patients often unwilling to fully complete - waste of time and money in preparation when outcome isn't different
50
Gilroy et al (2003) evidence
- effectiveness of SD
- 42 patients for spider phobia
- control group treated with relaxation without exposure
- 3 months + 33 months after treatment
- SD group less fearful than relaxation group
51
Genetic explanation of OCD description
- Lewis + Nestadt et al studies
- Focus on the role genes play in development of OCD
- Candidate genes may be involved in producing OCD symptoms
- OCD is polygenetic (230 gene variations)
- Aetiologically heterogeneous
52
Neural explanation of OCD description
- Focus on structure + function of the brain + nervous system in development of OCD
- reduction in serotonin production
- Dopamine high in OCD people
- decision making = lateral frontal lobes, impaired = hoarding disorder
- Left parahippocampal gyrus = unpleasant emotions = abnormal function in OCD
53
Who studied of genetic explanation of OCD?
Lewis (1936)
| Nestadt et al (2010)
54
Lewis (1936) findings
37% ocd patients parents had OCD
| 21% had siblings with OCD
55
What did Nestadt (2010) find?
68% of identical twins shared OCD
| 32% non identical twins shared OCD
56
Weaknesses of genetic explanation of OCD
- psychologists can't pin down genes involved in OCD due to multiple genes being involves - each variation only increases risk by fraction - genetic = little predictive value
- Croemer et al 2007 - over 50% OCD patients had trauma in past + more severe OCD with multiple trauma - can control environmental causes if focus on these rather than genetics
58
Strength for neural explanations for OCD
- antidepressants work by increasing serotonin levels - suggests serotonin involved in OCD - Parkinson's disease (Nestadt et al) - biological processes = cause symptoms + OCD
- Looked at decision making and found neural systems in decision making are that same systems that are functions abnormally in those with OCD - HOWEVER - research identified other brain systems that may be involved sometimes - therefore can't clsim to understand
59
Weakness for neural explanations for OCD
- we cant assume neural causes OCD - biological abnormalities could be result of OCD not the cause
60
Strengths of genetic explanation for OCD
| -Nestadt et al (2010)
-Nestadt (2010)-reviewed twin studies - 68% identical/ 31% non-identical shared OCD
61
What does the biological treatment for OCD do?
- Drug therapy aims to increase or decrease levels of neurotransmitters in the brain in order to increase or decrease the neurotransmitter activity
- does this by increasing serotonin levels
62
What is the biological treatment for OCD?
Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI)
63
Weaknesses for biological treatment for OCD?
-e.g. indigestion / blurred vision from SSRI's - can cause more problems than good
64
Strengths of biological treatment for OCD
- evidence for SSRI's effectiveness - soomro reviewed studies comparing SSRI's + placebos - drugs more effective than placebos in reducing symptoms in 17 studies + effectiveness greater when combined with psychological treatment - SSRI's decline 70% symptoms - drugs = useful
- cost effective + non-distuptive
65
How do SSRIs work?
Prevent reabsorption + breakdown of serotonin by presynaptic neuron therefore increasing serotonin so it can stimulate presynaptic neuron
