Psychopathology

Question 1

What are the four factors that define Abnormality

Answer 1

Deviation from Social norm, Failure to function Adequately, Deviation from ideal mental health and Statistical infrequency

Question 2

What is Deviation from Social norms

Answer 2

People behaving in a socially deviant and incomprehensible way that is regarded as abnormal
E.g going out naked

Question 3

What is the failure to function adequately

Answer 3

Rosenhan and Seligman in 1989 proposed that there are signs when someone is unable to function normally
- when a person no longer conforms to standard in personal rules e.g eye contact
- when a person experiences severe personal distress
- when a person behavior becomes irrational and dangerous to themselves and others

Question 4

What is deviation from ideal mental health

Answer 4

The Ideal mental health criteria was created by Johado in 1958
- no symptoms of distress
- we are rational and perceive ourselves in a healthy way
- we self actualise
- we have a realistic view of the world
- we are autonomous and independent
- we are able to master our environment (work, love and enjoying social life)

Question 5

What does Statistical frequency measure

Answer 5

According to them any usual behavior or characteristics van be thought of as ‘normal’ and any other behavior that is different is ‘abnormal’
E.g IQ in society
—> someone who is seen has an IQ above or below the average level of IQ in society is abnormal

Question 6

Evaluation of the Statistical frequency

Answer 6

• A weakness is that is does not define what desirable and undesirable behaviors are
  E.g someone having a higher IQ is not an undesirable behavior or associated with poor mental health
• A strength of the statistical frequency is that it helps address what is meant as normal and helps us make a cut in terms of diagnosis helping with treatment
  E.g someone who has a low IQ level will be judged as having a mental disorder so a doctor can identify a treatment that will help
• A strength is that it is scientific since it uses statistics

Question 7

Evaluation of Deviation from Social Norms

Answer 7

• A strength is that it does distinguish between desirable and undesirable behavior unlike the statistical frequency so the definition is useful
• A weakness of the deviation from social norms is that what is considered to be abnormal will change over time
  E.g homosexuality used to be seem as as abnormal and unacceptable but now it acceptable and normalized

Question 8

Evaluation of Deviation from Ideal Mental health

Answer 8

• A weakness is that Jahodas definition of ideal mental health is very unrealistic and an very optimistic view of mental health, with his definition everyone would be classified as abnormal
• A strength is that Jahodas definition offers a more positive view on rather than the negatives and what is desirable, her concept has some influence in the ‘positive psychology’ like the Humanistic approach

Question 9

Evaluation of Failure to function adequately

Answer 9

• A weakness of this is that adequate functioning us based in cultural ideas, so the standards of one culture is different to another, this can lead to one culture being used to to judge another
  E.g this could explain why lower class and non white patients are more often diagnoses with mental health issues compared to those who are higher class
• A strength is that the definition recognizes the subjective experience of each individual patient and allows us to get better insight into mental health and take a more personal approach in providing care for the patient

Question 10

What are the DSM -5 categories of phobias

Answer 10

Phobias are categorized by the excessive fear and anxiety triggered by an object, place or situation
E.g Specific phobia, Social anxiety, Agoraphobia

Question 11

What are the behavioral characteristics of Phobias

Answer 11

—> these are how we respond to things or situations we fear by behaving in specific ways
1. Panic: this may include behaviors like crying, screaming, freezing or running away
2. Avoidance: a person with a phobia will make effort in avoiding comin in contact with their phobia
E.g someone who is scared of public toilets will limit their time outside according to how long they can stay without using a toilet
3. Endurance: is when a person with a phobia remains in the presence of the phobia but continue tp experience high levels of anxiety

Question 12

What are the emotional characteristic of Phobias

Answer 12

—> these involve emotional responses of anxiety and fear
Anxiety: is an unpleasant feeling of high arousal, this can prevent a person from relaxing and making it hard to experience positive emotions
Fear: is the immediate and extremely unpleasant response
So the emotional response we experience in relation to a phobia is far beyond what is reasonable

Question 13

What are the cognitive characteristics of phobias

Answer 13

—> cognitive characteristics refer to the way people process information
1. Selective attention: the person will only focus on what is scaring them rather than looking at other things
2. Irrational beliefs: a person may hold irrational thoughts in relation to their phobia
3. Cognitive distortion: the phobic persons perception of the phobia might be distorted

Question 14

What does the Behavioral approach say about Phobias

Answer 14

They emphasis that the role of learning when it comes to acquiring behavior , they explain the behavioral aspects of Phobias which are Endurance, Avoidance and Panic

Question 15

What does Howver in 1960 propose

Answer 15

He proposed the two process model which states that Phobias are acquired by classical conditioning and maintained through operant conditioning

Question 16

What is classical conditioning

Answer 16

Classical conditioning is when a neutral stimulus us associated with an unconditioned stimulus, this produces a conditioned stimulus and conditioned response

Question 17

What did Watson and Raynor do

Answer 17

They created a phobia in a 9 month old baby ‘Little Albert’, whenever he rat was presented they made a loud noise by banging an iron bar close to Alberts ear

Question 18

Explain the process of classical conditioning in Little Alberts study

Answer 18

Noise is an unconditioned stimulus which creates an unconditioned response which is fear. When the neutral stimulus, which is the rat, is present at the same time as the noise (unconditioned stimulus) it will now produce a fear response. So the rat becomes a conditioned stimulus which will lead to a conditioned response (fear).

Question 19

What is operant conditioning and how does it relate to Phobias

Answer 19

Operant conditioning takes place when behavior is reinforced (rewarded) or punished
—> reinforcement increases the chance of the behavior being repeated for both positive and negative reinforcement
E.g whenever we avoid a phobic stimulus we escape the fear and anxiety by avoiding situations that are unpleasant —> this reinforces the avoidance behavior

Question 20

What are the strengths of the Behaviorist approach on Phobias

Answer 20

• A strength is that their explanations are applied in therapy, these therapies are systematic desensitization and flooding
  —> desensitization helps people unlearn their phobias through classical conditioning, while flooding prevents people from avoiding their phobias and stopping negative reinforcement
• A strength is that there is research support for classical conditioning
  —> this is shown in the Little Albert study
  HOWEVER, since this is a case study it is hard to generalize to wider society as there are differences in adults and children

Question 21

What are the weaknesses of the Behaviorist approach on Phobias

Answer 21

• A weakness is that it ignores biological factors
  —> the two process model can’t explain why some individuals have certain phobias
  E.g Bounton agues that evolutionary factors have an important role in Phobias, we acquire phobias of things that have been a source of danger in the past such as snakes and the dark —> so it is a predispositional fear
• A weakness is that it is reductionist
  —> the two process model ignores biological, cognitive, emotional factors when acquiring a phobia
• A weakness is that there are alternative approaches which decreases the validity of t
  —> the Learning Theory argues that phobias can be developed through observation rather than classical conditioning

Question 22

What are the Behaviorist treatments

Answer 22

Flooding and Systematic desensitization

Question 23

What is systematic desensitization

Answer 23

It is a behavioral therapy that reduces anxiety through classical conditioning so if a person with the phobia can learn to relax in the presence of the phobia it will be cursed which is counterbalancing
- it is impossible for a person to feel afraid and relaxed at the same time, one feeling prevents the other feeling which is reciprocal inhibition

Question 24

What is the process of systematic desensitization

Answer 24

There are three processes
1. Creating a anxiety hierarchy
—> the patient and therapist do this together and it goes from the least to most frightening
2. Relaxation
—> the research teaches the patient to relax as much as possible, this can be through meditation, breathing exercises or drugs like Valium
3. Exposure
—> then finally the patient is exposed to their phobia while in a calm state starting from the bottom hierarchy to all the way up

Question 25

What is the process of flooding

Answer 25

It involves immediate exposure to a very frightening situation, this stops the phobic response very quickly as they realize it is harmless, and the phobia stops this is extinction
—> so the learners response is extinguished when the conditioned stimulus (eg dog) is encountered without the unconditioned stimulus (eg being bitten) so the conditioned stimulus no longer results into the conditioned response (fear)

Question 26

What are the strengths of the Treatments

Answer 26

• A strength is the effectiveness of systematic desensitization
• Gilroy et al in 2002 examined 42 patients with a fear of spiders, each patient was treated using the 45 minute systematic desensitization
  —> when examined three months and 33 months after later the systematic desensitization group was less fearful compared to the control group who were only taught relaxation technique
• A strength is that behavioral therapies are generally faster and cheaper and require less effort on the patients part —> this helps people who lack insight on their emotions and motivations, so it os helpful to a wide range of individuals to help people with their problems

Question 27

What are the weaknesses of the Treatments

Answer 27

• A weakness is that flooding is highly traumatic as there is an increase in the level of anxiety
• Wolpe in 1969 recalled a case with a patient becoming so anxious she required hospitalization
  EVENTHOUGH flooding provides informed consent the patient might not complete their trial as it is too stressful
• A weakness of behavioral treatments is that they do not work with certain phobias
  —> if the symptom is removed the cause still remains and the symptoms will resurface in a different form

Question 28

What are the DSM- 5 categories of depression

Answer 28

All forms of depression are characterized as changes to mood
1. Major depressive disorder (severe but short term)
2. Persistent depressive disorder (long term and reoccurring)
3. Disruptive model dysregulation disorder (childhood temper tantrums)
4. Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (disruption to mood before and during menstruation)

Question 29

What are the behavioral characteristics of depression

Answer 29

—> behavior changes when we suffer an episode of depression
1. Activity levels: people with depression have a reduced level if energy which will lead to the Knock on effect —> they withdraw from work, school and social life but it could also lead to psychomotor agitation —> this is when they struggle to relax
2. Disruption to sleep and eating behavior: people suffer from reduced sleep (INSOMNIA) or an increase in sleep (HYPERSOMNIA), the same goes for eating, a person might lose or gain a lot of weight
3. Aggression and self harm: people with depression might be irritated and become more aggressive which could also lead to physical aggression against the self

Question 30

What are the emotional characteristics of depression

Answer 30

1. Lowered mood: people with depression have prolonged lower moods where they might describe themselves as feeling empty and worthless
2. Anger: people with depression might experience more negative feelings and less positive feelings this could also lead to them feeling anger and extreme anger
3. Lowered self esteem: people with depression tend to feel reduced self esteem which is quite extreme