Psychopathology Flashcards
What are the 4 definitions of abnormality?
1) Deviation from Social Norms
- An unwritten rule of society.
2) Failure to Function Adequately
- not being able to cope with everyday living:
e.g. doesn’t maintain basic hygiene/nutrition
causes distress to themselves or others
they are irrational/unpredictable
behaviour restricts their social/occupational goals
3) Statistical Infrequency
- Numerically rare (less than 2%)
4) Deviation from Ideal Mental Health
- Jahoda argued physical ill-health is judged by a lack of signs of physical health, so mental health should be looked at in the same way.
Evaluate Deviation from Social Norms Definition.
+ Considers the fact that behaviour is context specific
- Era dependent.
- Social Deviancy isn’t always a bad thing so shouldn’t always be seen as abnormal.
- Cultural Bias
Evaluate Failure to Function Adequately Definition.
+ Provides a checklist to assess whether someone is not functioning adequately.
- Doesn’t consider individual differences.
- People can function normally with mental illness.
- Cultural bias
Evaluate Statistical Infrequency Definition.
+ Objective quantitative cut off point
- Fails to distinguish between desirable and non-desirable behaviours.
- Some mental illnesses aren’t statistically rare.
- Cultural Bias
What are the 6 characteristics of Ideal Mental Health?
- Positive Attitude to oneself
- Environmental Mastery
- Autonomy
- Accurate Perception of reality
- Resisting stress
- Self Actualisation
PEAARS
What is autonomy?
Being independent, self-reliant and able to make personal decisions.
Evaluate Deviation from Ideal Mental Health Definition
+ Focuses on what is desirable so provides goals.
- Some of the criteria are vague and difficult to assess so rely on subjective judgements.
- Criteria is over-demanding - few people meet all of it
- Cultural bias
What are phobias?
A type of anxiety disorder. Phobias are uncontrollable, irrational and extreme reactions to an object or situation.
What are the 3 key features of a phobic disorder?
- Reaction is excessive and causes great distress
- Phobia interferes with normal life
- Persists for at least 6 months
What are the emotional, behavioural and cognitive characteristics of phobias?
EMOTIONAL
- Anxiety (long-term)
- Fear (immediate)
- Unreasonable emotional response
BEHAVIOURAL
- Panic
- Avoidance
- Endurance
COGNITIVE
- Irrational beliefs
- Selective attention to stimulus
- Cognitive disorders
How are phobias acquired and maintained? (Two process model)
Acquired through classical conditioning.
Maintained through operant conditioning. Negative reinforcement - phobias persist because the person avoids the thing they are frightened of.
Evaluate the Two Process Model to explaining phobias.
+ Practical Applications - e.g. systematic desensitisation - successful treatments
+ There is research to support it - e.g. Little Albert
- There is contradictory research. - e.g. only 2% of individuals with water phobia reported an unpleasant experience with water.
- Alternative explanations of phobias - e.g. biological preparedness (innate fears from evolution)
What are the two main treatments for Phobias? Explain them.
SYSTEMATIC DESENSITISATION
Gradually exposing a person to their phobic stimulus while using relaxation techniques.
FLOODING
The immediate exposure to their phobic stimulus.
Why does systematic desensitisation work?
Reciprocal inhibition (the idea that we cannot feel two conflicting emotions at once) - fear and relaxation.
What are the stages of SD?
1) Client works out hierarchy of fear from the least to the most frightening.
2) Client learns relaxation techniques
3) Client works through the hierarchy of fear while using relaxation techniques.
What techniques can be used to expose someone to their feared stimulus in SD?
- Visualisation
- Virtual Reality
- Modelling
- Role play
- Actual exposure
Evaluate SD and Flooding.
+ There is research to support SD - e.g. McGrath found about 75% effectiveness for specific behaviours.
+ Research has assessed the long term effects of SD - e.g. patients who received 3 sessions of SD were less fearful of spiders 3 months and 33 months after the treatment than a control group.
+ Research found that flooding and SD are equally effective.
- SD might be preferred to flooding
What is OCD?
An anxiety disorder. Sufferers experience obsessions which lead to compulsions.
Occurs in about 2% of the population.
What are obsessions and compulsions?
OBSESSIONS
Irrational, inappropriate, intrusive thoughts.
COMPULSIONS
Uncontrollable urges to repetitively carry out a behaviour to reduce anxiety.
What are the behavioural, emotional and cognitive characteristics of OCD?
BEHAVIOURAL
- Compulsions
- Hinders everyday functioning
- Social Impairment
EMOTIONAL
- Extreme anxiety felt
- Distress
- Depression
COGNITIVE
- Obsessive thinking
- Selective Attention
- Realisation of inappropriateness
What are the 2 biological explanations for OCD?
GENETIC EXPLANATION
- Genetic transmission from biological parent to child.
- SERT gene affects the transport of serotonin.
- Twin studies
NEURAL EXPLANATION
- caused by abnormal levels of neurotransmitters/abnormal brain circuits
- OCD sufferers have high levels of activity in the orbitofrontal cortex - linked to low levels of serotonin (inhibits the post-synaptic neuron from firing).
Evaluate the Genetic Theory/explanation for OCD
+ Practical applications - e.g. genetic screening of parents.
+ Research evidence examining specific genes - e.g. study of 2 families where 6/7 family members had OCD. They found a mutation in the SERT gene in these members. (However OCD is polygenetic).
- OCD is not only caused by genes - over half the OCD patients studied had a traumatic event in their past - OCD is therefore explained more by Diathesis Stress (environmental triggers combined with gene disposition).
- Children often show dissimilar OCD symptoms to their parents.
Evaluate the Neural explanation of OCD
+ Practical applications - this explanation could be used to help with diagnosis and treatment for OCD - e.g. brain scans and drug treatments.
+ Research evidence - e.g. lower serotonin activity found in OCD patients than controls.
+ Research evidence - increasing levels of serotonin seem to reduce symptoms of OCD (e.g. SSRIs)
- OCD is often co-morbid (combined with other disorders) - e.g. depression - low serotonin levels could be the cause of the depression, not OCD.
State the 2 biological treatments for OCD?
Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs)
and Benzodiazepines (BZs)
How do SSRIs work?
They increases the levels of serotonin, causing the orbitofrontal cortex to function more normally.
Typically used as an antidepressant.
How do BZs work?
They slow down the CNS by increasing activity of GABA ( a neurotransmitter). GABA binds to receptors, opening a channel that increases the flow of Cl- into the neuron. This ion has an inhibitory effect which makes the person feel relaxed.
Evaluate Drug Therapy for OCD
+ Supporting research - e.g. SSRIs were more effective than a placebo. They were effective for about 70% of people.
- Side effects - e.g. Indigestion, insomnia, blurred vision, low libido for SSRIs - long-term memory problems and aggression for BZs.
- CBT just as effective (60%)
- Publication bias - researchers sponsored by drug companies and so only publish positive outcomes.
What is depression?
An affective mood disorder, characterised by feelings of sadness and withdrawal from people. Can be mild or severe and can involve inability to make decisions and perform tasks.
What are the two types of depression?
Major/Unipolar depression
Manic/Bipolar depression - characterised by periods of depressed mood that alternate with periods of extremely elevated mood, increased energy and euphoria (mania).
What are the behavioural, emotional and cognitive characteristics of depression?
BEHAVIOURAL
- Loss of energy
- Social Impairment
- Sleep Pattern Disturbance
- Poor Personal Hygiene
EMOTIONAL
- Depressed mood
- Worthlessness (low self-esteem)
- Loss of pleasure
COGNITIVE
- Focus on the negative
- Thoughts of death
- Reduced concentration
- Poor memory
How is someone diagnosed for Depression?
At least 2 weeks of symptoms: DSM Criteria
- Low Mood
- Lack of interest
- Eating and weight
- Sleep
- Motor activity (e.g. agitated)
- Fatigue
- Self-worth
- Concentration
- Death
What do Cognitive Explanations argue about depression?
When our cognitions/thoughts are negative and irrational, it can result in maladaptive (unhelpful) behaviours like depression.
Who were the two people involved with the explanations of depression?
Beck and Ellis
What is Beck’s Cognitive Vulnerability?
1) Errors in Logic
2) Negative Self-schema’s
3) The Cognitive Triad (link between negative view of self, future and world)
Give some examples of Errors in Logic.
- Magnification and Minimisation
- Personalisation
- Arbitrary Inference (lack of supporting data for negative thought)
- Selective Abstraction
What is Ellis’s ABC model?
Irrational beliefs result in ‘Mustabatory thinking’ (when something MUST be true).
Activating Event –> Belief –> Consequences
What type of therapy challenges mustabatory thinking?
REBT (Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy)
What are the 2 main elements of CBT?
COGNITIVE
Identifying and replacing negative /irrational thoughts with more realistic ones and examining evidence for/against them.
BEHAVIOURAL
Encouraging clients to behave in ways they may have avoided because of their beliefs, through setting tasks and challenges.
What is thought catching and reality testing?
THOUGHT CATCHING
Challenging irrational thoughts and replacing them with more rational thoughts.
REALITY TESTING
When a client is set homework tasks to test the reality of their thoughts and to gather evidence showing their thoughts are irrational.
What is an example of a technique Beck used on clients with depression that can be used to challenge negative thinking? (other than reality testing)
Dysfunctional Thought Diary
- writing down irrational thoughts and rating their belief in them.
- writing a more rational alternative to the thought
- re-rating the original irrational thought
REBT extends the ABC model to include D and E. What do these stand for?
Dispute and Effect
How can disputing be done?
Empirical Argument = disputing by examining evidence for thoughts
Logical Argument = disputing whether the negative thought logically follows the facts.
Evaluate CBT as a treatment for depression.
+ Research evidence - There was a similar effectiveness (60%) of CBT, REBT and drugs on clients with depression. However there was a higher relapse rate for the drug group. Therapy is better long-term.
- Takes time and effort and money
Evaluate the Cognitive Approach to explaining Depression.
+ Practical Applications (CBT and REBT)
+ Supporting Evidence - mothers with more maladaptive thoughts had worst post-natal depression.
- Issues with how depression can be assessed - e.g. BDI (questionnaire, closed questions, social desirability bias etc)
What are the positives to using CBT and REBT rather than drugs?
+ Long Term
+ Empowering - self-help strategies
+ No side effects
