Psychopathology Flashcards
What are the strengths of deviation from social norms?
Flexible depending on situation and age
Gives clarity- if you’ve lived within a culture for a long time, you’ll be aware of what is/ is not acceptable
Helps society by adhering to social norms
What are the limitations of deviations from social norms
Changes over time- changes in societal attitudes and legislation means social norms are dependent on the time. Can lead to generational divides in what is considered as a social norm
Deviance often relies on the context of behaviours
Cultural differences- can’t be generalised as it depends on what is normal within that culture
Strengths of statistical infrequency
Intuitive- idea that abnormality is when something doesn’t occur
Objective- distinguishable between what is abnormal/ not
Useful overview- takes the whole population into account (population validity) and gives useful insight
Limitations of statistical infrequency
Some abnormal behaviours are desirable- therefore using Si to define abnormality means that we are unable to distinguish between desirable and undesirable behaviour
Subjective cut off point- difficult to define abnormality in terms of SI
Abnormal behaviours can occur frequently- 25% of the population will experience a mental health issue (which is abnormal)
No consideration of cultural differences/ variances between cultures are not considered
Examples of failure to function adequately
Intelligence disability disorder
- Evidence for signs that someone cannot cope with everyday life
Strengths of failure to function adequately
Dependent on context- allows for the context and experience of the patient to be taken into account
Limitations of failure to function adequately
Cultural relativism- ethnocentric explanation
Adaptive/ maladaptive- what is functional for one may be maladaptive for another
Subjectivity- who judges what is functional or not?
What does deviations from ideal mental health suggest?
mental illnesses can be diagnosed the same way that physical illnesses can be
Strengths of deviations from ideal mental health
Positive approach
Comprehensive- covers a wide range of criteria for mental health
Limitations of deviations from ideal mental health
Cultural relativism
Mental health and physical health are different and should be diagnosed differently
Difficult to meet all criteria- suggests there are very few psychologically healthy people
What does defining someone as abnormal imply?
Their behaviour is undesirable and requires change
What are the three most common mental disorders
Depression 2.6%
Phobias 2.6%
OCD 1.3%
What are the three categories that phobias can be placed into
Behavioural- Phobic stimulus is either avoided or responded to with great anxiety
Emotional- exposure to the phobic stimulus nearly always produces a rapid anxiety response
Cognitive- A person would recognise that the fear is excessive (conscious about phobia)
What are specific phobias
Phobia of an object such as an animal or body part or a situation such as phobias or having an infection
What are social phobias
Phobia of social situations
Behaviourist approach to phobias
Focus on external behaviours
Learning through conditioning and social learning
Reinforcing maladaptive behaviours
Classical conditioning- initiation
Phobia is acquired through association
Classical conditioning- initiation- Little Albert
UCS- loud noise
UCR- fear
Association produced a CR with the phobia as the CS
Showed generalisation
Classical conditioning- initiation
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Research support
Importance of CC- people can recall a specific incidents where the phobia occurred
Classical conditioning- initiation
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CC doesn’t explain the maintenance of phobias only the development of phobias
Operant conditioning- maintenance
+Key study associated
Phobias are learnt through reinforcement
Skinners rat
Operant conditioning- maintenance
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Research support- Skinner’s rat box
Explains why a phobia is maintained ( more you come into contact, the more fear is produced)
Operant conditioning- maintenance
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Doesn’t explain why a phobia occurs
Ignores cognitive processes
Social Learning Theory
Phobias acquired through the modelling the behaviours of others
Evaluation of SLT
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Research support- Bandura and Rosenthan- modelling
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Incomplete explanation
Two process model
Theory that explains the two processes that lead to the development of phobias
Before- unconditioned stimulus -> unconditioned response
During- neutral stimulus -> unconditioned stimulus
After- Conditioned stimulus -> conditioned response
Evaluations of Two process model
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High validity
- Deterministic- Suggests we are programmed by environmental experiences and ignores free will
Reductionistic- Complex mental disorders caused by association and rewards and punishment
Ignores childhood and biology
What are the two behavioural methods used in the treatment of phobias
Systemic desensitisation
Flooding
SD- Wolpe
Based on CC, counterconditioning and reciprocal inhibition
Therapy aims to gradually anxiety through counterconditioning
Phobia (CS) + Fear (CR)
CS + relaxation (new CR)
Reciprocal inhibition
Not possible to be afraid to be afraid and relaxed at the same time, so one emotion prevents the other
Two types of SD
Covert desensitisation- imagining
In vert- actual contact
3 SD processes
Anxiety hierarchy
Relaxation techniques
Exposure to phobic stimulus while using relaxation techniques
What do Individuals who suffer from mental disorders have? (according to the cognitive approach)
They have distorted and irrational thinking and this may cause maladaptive behaviour
What is the main assumption about the thinking process that occurs with those with mental disorders ? (according to the cognitive approach)
According to the cognitive approach , its the way you think about the problem rather than the problem itself which causes the disorders
How can Individuals overcome psychological disorders?
Can overcome psychological disorders by learning to use more appropriate cognitions e.g. learning a new way of thinking
What is a Schema ?
- An organized pattern of thought or behaviour
- A structured cluster of pre-conceived ideas
- Schema can be hard to incorporate new information into our schemas
Aims of Weissman and Beck (1978) - Research study
To investigate the thought processes of depressed people to establish if they make use of negative schema
Method of Weissman and Beck (1978) research study into the role of schema in depression
Thought processes were measured using the dysfunctional attitude scale , participants were asked to fill in a questionnaire by ticking whether they agreed or disagreed with a set of statements
- For example , ‘ people will probably think less of me if i make a mistake’
What were the results from Weissman and Beck research study and what can we conclude from these results ?
- Depressed participants made more negative assessments than non-depressed people
- However improvement was seen when therapy had been undergone
- From this we can conclude than depression involves the use of negative schema
Evaluation of Beck’s theory (strengths)
- The view that depression and irrational thinking is supported by research , Hammen and Krantz (1976) found that depressed participants made more errors in logic when asked to interpret written material than non-depressed participants
- Practical applications in therapy (CBT)
Evaluation of Beck’s theory (Limitations)
- Blames the client rather than situational factors
- The biological approach believes that mental disorders suggests genes and neurotransmitters that cause depression rather than irrational thinking
What did Ellis propose that good mental health is the result of ?
Rational thinking
What is the activating event (ABC model ) ?
According to Ellis depression occurs when we experience negative events , such as failing a important test or ending a relationship
What is the Beliefs about what happened ?(ABC model)
An activating event triggers irrational beliefs
What is the consequence of the irrational belief formed through the activating event ? (ABC model)
When an activating event triggers irrational beliefs there are emotional and behavioural consequences
- such as if you belief you must always succeed and then you fail at something , the consequence is depression
Evaluation of Ellis ABC model (strengths)
- some irrational beliefs may be realistic
- Alloy and Abramson (1979) suggests that depressive realists tend to see things for what they are and not through ‘rose tinted glasses’ , they also found that depressed people are more accurate estimates of the likelihood of a disaster than ‘normal’
Evaluation of Ellis ABC model (limitation)
Doesn’t explain all aspects off depression as there isnt always a activating event as not all depression arises as a result of an obvious case and cannot be generalised to all types of depression
How do Patients and therapists work together in CBT?
- They work together to clarify the patients problems
- They identify where there might be negative/irrational thoughts that should be challenged
How are patients encouraged into taking a active role in their therapy ?
- patients are encouraged to challenge their negative thoughts
- patients are also encouraged to test the reality of their irrational beliefs
What are the steps of Beck’s cognitive therapy ?
- First the client will be assessed to discover the severity of their conditions
- The therapist will establish a baseline prior to treatment
- The therapist would use a process of reality testing
- The therapist might ask the client to do something to demonstrate their ability to succeed
What did Ellis argue is the main cause of all types of emotional distress and disorders?
Irrational thoughts
what does REBT extend the ABC model to?
It extends the ABC model to the ABCDEF model
What is the empirical argument ?
Disputing whether there is evidence to support the irrational beliefs
What is the logical argument within REBT ?
Disputing whether the negative thoughts actually follow the facts
What does REBT challenge the client to prove ?
challenges the client to prove any irrational thoughts and then replace them with more reasonable and realistic statements
What did Ellis believe was the most important ingredient in successful therapy ?
Convincing the client of their value , as if the client believes they are worthless they will be less willing to change their behaviour
What must a therapist provides during therapy and how will this help the client ?
The therapist must provide respect and appreciation regardless of what the client does as this will facilltate a change in beliefs and attitudes
What are the similarities between Beck’s and Ellis’s approaches to depression ?
- Both cognitive explanations
- Both client centered approachs
- Both challenges irrational beliefs
- Both seek evidence to challenge the beliefs
What are the differences between Beck’s and Ellis’s approaches to depression ?
- CBT puts the client at the centre more than REBT
- Ellis suggests the challenge of belief can be vigorous and led by both client and therapist
- Beck sets homework
- Ellis uses empirical evidence to dictate what is real
What are the Candidate genes ?
SERT gene
COMT gene
What is OCD in terms of genes ?
OCD is polygenic
What is the neural explanation ?
- Dopamine levels are high in OCD , dopamine increases brain activity , these high levels can increase the severity of the OCD
- Serotonin levels low in OCD , this increases irrational thinking as without serotonin emotions do not stablise
What are the three alternatives to SSRIs ?
- Tricyclics
- GABA (anti-anxiety drugs)
- Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT)
What is GABA and what does it do ?
Anti-anxiety drugs , a neurotransmitter that regulates excitement in the nervous system and acts like a natural form of anxiety reducer
