Psychopathology Flashcards
What are the definitions of abnormality?
- Statistical Infrequency
- Deviation from Social Norms
- Deviation from Ideal Mental Health
- Failure to Function Adequately
What is ‘Statistical Infrequency’?
- Any behaviour or characteristic that isn’t seen normally in terms of statistics
What is a ‘Deviation from Social Norms’?
- Behaviour that is different from how most people behave due to social ideas and norms
What is ‘Failure to Function Adequately’?
- Can no longer cope with the demands of everyday life
What is a ‘Deviation from Ideal Mental Health’?
- Proposed by Jahoda (1958)
- No distress, rational, perceive ourselves accurately, can cope with stress, can successfully work
What does the DSM categorise Phobias?
Excessive fear and anxiety, triggered by an object, place or situation, that is out of proportion to any real danger posed by it
What are the behavioural characteristics of phobias?
Panic
Avoidance
Endurance
What are the emotional characteristics of phobias?
Anxiety
Fear
What are the cognitive characteristics of phobias?
Selective attention to stimulus
Cognitive distortions
What is the behavioural explanation to to phobias?
- Acquisition by classical conditioning
- Maintained by operant conditioning
What is the behavioural treatments?
- Systematic Desensitisation
Use classical conditioning to gradually reduce phobic anxiety (anxiety hierarchy) - Flooding
Exposing to their phobic stimulus without a gradual build-up
What are the DSM-5 categories of depression?
- Major depressive disorder - severe but mostly short-term depression
- Persistent depressive disorder - long-term or recurring depression
- Disruptive mood dysregulation disorder - childhood temper tantrums
- Premenstrual dysphoric disorder - disruption to mood prior to/during menstruation
What are the behavioural characteristics of depression?
Reduced activity levels
Disruption to sleep and eating behaviour
Aggression and self-harm
What are the emotional characteristics of depression?
Lowered mood
Anger
Lowered self-esteem
What are the cognitive characteristics of depression?
Poor concentration
Attending to and dwelling on the negative
Absolutist thinking
What is Beck’s Negative Triad?
- Cognitive explanation for depression
- Faulty information processing, negative self-schema
- Negative triad - negative view of the world, negative view of the future, negative view of the self
What is Ellis’s ABC Model?
- Cognitive explanation for depression
Activating Event - Experience a negative event
Beliefs - Identified a range of irrational beliefs
Consequences - Irrational beliefs cause emotional and behavioural consequences
What is a cognitive treatment to depression?
(combining two approaches)
Cognitive Behaviour Therapy
- Cognitive - Client is assessed where the therapist and client work together to clarify the clients problems
- Behaviour - Involves trying to change negative and irrational thoughts and put more effective behaviours into place
What is Beck’s Cognitive Therapy?
- Focuses on his negative triad
- Work to challenge thoughts directly, aiming to test the reality of their negative beliefs
- Such as recording when they enjoyed an event
What is Ellis’s Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy?
- Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy extends the ABC model to an ABCDE model - D for Dispute, E for Effect
- This is done to identify and despite irrational thoughts
What is the DSM-5 categories of OCD?
OCD is characterised by either obsessions (recurring thoughts etc) and/or compulsions (repetitive behaviour)
What are the behavioural characteristics of OCD?
1) Compulsions are repetitive
2) Compulsions reduce anxiety
3) Avoidance from situations that trigger compulsions
What are the emotional characteristics of OCD?
1) Anxiety and Distress
Accompanies obsessions and compulsions
2) Accompanying Depression
Lack of enjoyment in activities
3) Guilt and Disgust
Can involve other negative emotions like guilt
What are the cognitive characteristics of OCD?
1) Obsessive Thoughts
Vary considerably from person to person
2) Cognitive Coping Strategies
People can also respond by adopting cognitive coping strategies
3) Insight into Excessive Anxiety
People that are aware that their obsessions and compulsions are not rational
