psychopathology 1.2

Question 1

phobias

Answer 1

an irrational fear of an object, place or situation that causes a constant avoidance of that object, place or situation

Question 2

the different categories of phobias

Answer 2

specific phobia
social phobia
agoraphobia

Question 3

specific phobia

Answer 3

phobia of a specific object or situation e.g. a needle, spider or flying

Question 4

social phobia

Answer 4

phobia of social situations e.g. public speaking

Question 5

agoraphobia

Answer 5

fear of being outside

Question 6

emotional characteristics of phobias

Answer 6

emotional responses - being unreasonable and irrational, emotional response felt by sufferer is disproportionate to the danger they are facing

anxiety - unpleasant state of high arousal and this stops the person from being able to relax or feel any other emotion

fear- person’s immediate reaction when coming into contact with phobia is fear

Question 7

behavioural characteristics of phobias

Answer 7

panic - a person with a phobia may panic in response to the phobic stimulus, could result in crying, screaming and/or running away

avoidance - avoid phobic stimulus which can make day to day life complicated e.g. fear of going outside, unable to function

endurance - opposite to avoidance, individual chooses to remain in the presence of the phobia, continues to suffer and experience high levels of anxiety

Question 8

depression

Answer 8

a mood disorder where the suffering experiences low mood and low energy levels

all forms of depressive disorders are characterised by changes in mood or loss of interest in activities that were once found to be pleasurable

this must be for no less than 2 weeks

Question 8

cognitive characteristics of phobias

Answer 8

selective attention to the source of the phobia, near phobia can’t focus on anything else

usually keeping attention on something dangerous gives higher chance of survival, this isn’t the case when the fear is irrational

cognitive distortions - perception of phobia can be distorted e.g. someone who has a phobia of spiders can see spider as aggressive and angry looking even may feel that the spider is running towards them to attack

Question 9

what categories of depression did the DSM-5 recognise?

Answer 9

major depressive disorder-severe but often short tern depression

disruptive mood disregulation disorder- childhood tantrums

persistent depressive disorder- long term, reoccurring depression including sustained major depression

premenstrual dysphoric disorder- disruption of mood before and.or during menstruation

Question 10

cognitive characteristics of depression

Answer 10

negative view of world - no hope, turn out badly

irrational thoughts - sees world negatively, thoughts don’t accurately reflect reality

poor concentration-unable to stick to specific tasks, hard to make decisions

negative expectations of themselves- unrealistic expectations about themselves and their relationships

Question 11

behavioural characteristics of depression

Answer 11

shift in activity levels- can be increase or decrease

affected sleep- can be increased (need to sleep) or decrease (insomnia)

affected appetite - can increase (binge eating for comfort) or decrease (can’t eat and struggles to eat)

aggression and self harm - aggressive with themselves e.g. suicide attempts

Question 12

emotional characteristics of depression

Answer 12

sadness- lowered mood can lead to hopelessness

anger- angry outbursts can be directed to themselves or others

loss of interest- may lose interest in hobbies that once brought joy

lower self esteem - self loathing e.g. hating themselves

Question 13

OCD

Answer 13

an anxiety disorder and is characterised by experiencing persistent and intrusive thoughts which occur as obsessions, compulsions or sometimes both

Question 14

obsessions

Answer 14

cognitive internal intrusive thoughts

e.g. there are germs everywhere and they could harm me

Question 14

compulsions

Answer 14

behavioural external repetitive behaviours

e.g. i need to wash my hands each time i touch something

Question 15

excoriation

Answer 15

compulsive skin picking

Question 15

trichotillomania

Answer 15

compulsive skin picking

Question 16

emotional characteristics of OCD

Answer 16

extreme anxiety- sufferer is more likely to suffer from extreme levels of anxiety, obsessive thoughts and the compulsions that cause the sufferer anxiety and distress

guilt- guilt over a situation or disgusted with themselves

depression- low mood, lack of enjoyment of activities brought on by the compulsions and obsessions

Question 17

behavioural characteristics of OCD

Answer 17

compulsions- largest behavioural characteristics which are repetitive and time consuming to everyday life e.g. having to wash hands 7 times could make you late, they reduce anxiety

avoidance- sufferer is likely to try and avoid situations that would cause them to show their compulsions, this can stop them from attending social situations as they are worried, fear that encounter may trigger response

Question 18

cognitive characteristics of OCD

Answer 18

obsessive thoughts - majority of OCD sufferers have these, thoughts reoccur over and over again and are often intrusive

obsessive anxiety- understands thoughts are irrational but can’t stop them, catastrophic thoughts about what could happen