Psychopathology Flashcards
What are the 4 definitions of abnormality?
- Statistical infrequency
- Deviation from social norms
- Failure to function adequately
- Deviation from ideal mental health
What are the evaluations for failure to function adequately?
- Represents a threshold for help
Professional help when needed - Discrimination and social control
People with alternative lifestyles may be classified as abnormal
What are the evaluations for deviation from an ideal mental health adequately?
Comprehensive definition
Provides a checklisst for deeper discussion on our mental health leading to self-actualisation
Culture-bound
European view, self actualisation not a necessity in all countries
different views on independence
What are some factors in Jahodas mental health? (4)
- We self-actualise
- Can cope with stress
- Good self esteem and lack guilt
- Accurate self perception
What are the evaluations for statistical infrequency?
- Real world applications
In clinical practice to diagnose symptoms
IDD needs and IQ below 70
Unusual characteristics can be positive
We say a low IQ is unusual but what about one too high?
What are the evaluations for deviation from social norms?
- Real-world applications
Clinical practice for antisocial personality disorder - cultural and situational relativism
cultural - hearing voices may be normal
situational - aggressive in context of deal making
What are the 3 behavioural characteristics of a phobia?
Panic, Avoidance, Endurance
What are the 3 emotional characteristics of a phobia?
Anxiety, fear, unreasonable emotional response
What are the 3 cognitive characteristics of a phobia?
selective attention, irrational beliefs, distortions
What are the 3 behavioural characteristics of a depression?
Activity levels, sleep/eating disruption, aggression/self harm
What are the 3 emotional characteristics of a depression?
Lowered mood, anger, low self esteem
What are the 3 cognitive of a depression?
Negative dwelling, poor concentration, absolutist thinking
What are the 3 behavioural characteristics of a OCD?
Avoidance, compulsions are repetitive, compulsions reduce anxiety
What are the 3 emotional characteristics of a OCD?
Anxiety, depression, guilt
What are the 3 cognitive characteristics of a OCD?
Obsessive thoughts, cognitive coping strategies, excessive anxiety
What is a phobia?
An extreme fear, triggered by an object, place or situation
What are 2 ways of treating phobias?
Systematic desensitisation
Flooding
What are the 3 parts of systematic desensitisation?
- anxiety hierarchy
- Relaxation training
- Exposure
What is a strength of systematic desensitisation?
Real-life application
good for disabled people
They would not be good for flooding
better alternative
What is a strength and weakness of flooding?
+ cost effective
- only one session
- quick
- Traumatic
- questions ethical issues
What is depression?
A mental disorder characterised by low mood and low energy levels
What is the explanation for phobias?
Two-process model
Who presented the idea of the two process model?
Mowrer for phobias
Explain how phobias link to little Albert?
Little albert showed no issues at start
Was presented with a white rat
Whenever rat shown a bang noise would be made with an iron bar
He then displayed fear
This was then generalised to other furry objects
(fur coat)
Who conducted the little Albert study?
Watson and Rayner
How are phobias maintained?
Operant conditioning
How does operant conditioning maintain a phobia?
When a person actively avoids the phobia object, there anxiety is reduced
What are 3 evaluations for the 2 process model?
Real-world applications
-Useful for exposure therapy developments
RW support
Little albert
- Jongh et al - dental patients 73% phobia trauma
Not all phobias are from bad experiences
- Phobia of snakes yet many have never seen any
Limits cognitive aspects of a phobia
What are the 2 cognitive explanations for depression?
becks negative triad
Ellis’s ABC model
What are the 3 factors of becks negative triad for depression?
Negative view of the world
Negative view of oneself
Negative view of the future
What is the main idea in becks negative triad?
Negative self schema
What is the main idea in Elis’s ABC model??
Irrational beliefs are the causation of depression
What is Elis’s ABC model?
Activating event
Beliefs
Consequences
What are the 2 evaluations for Elis’s ABC model?
Real-world applications
- formed REBT therapy
Reactive and Endogenous depression
- Only explains reactive depression
Much depression isn’t always traceable to life events
What are 2 types of cognitive treatments for depression?
REBT
CBT
What is CBT? (3)
Depression treatment
- challenge irrational thought
- identify negative triad
- Set homework to test reality
What is REBT?
Vigorous argument to remove negative/irrational beliefs
What are 3 evaluations for treating depression?
Relapse rates
- high for CBT
Not suitable
- Depressed people are rarely so bothered (lack of motivation)
Evidence of effectiveness
- better than antidepressants
- March et al
What are the 2 types of explanations for OCD?
Neural and genetic
What is the neural explanation for OCD?
Serotonin regulates mood
Low serotonin creates more OCD
Left parahippocampal gyro is for unpleasant emotions and functions abnormally in OCD
abnormal functioning of orbital Frontal cortex for decision making, high activity here leads to high-worry
What is the Left Parahippocampal gyro for?
Unpleasant emotions, but this functions differently for people with OCD
What are the 2 evaluations for the genetic explanation of OCD?
Environment risk
- does not take in the environment factors
Research support
- twin study (Nestadt et al)
68% identical twins shared OCD
31% non-identical shared OCD
What is the genetic explanation for OCD? (2)
- Candidate gene that emphasis OCD
- OCD is polygenic
Taylor et al - 230 genes for OCD
What are the 2 evaluations for the neural explanation of OCD?
research support
- Antidepressants purely on serotonin reduce OCD
No unique neural system
- Serotonin is also key in depression
- Serotonin may not be purely linked to OCD
What is the diathesis-stress model?
certain genes leave people more likely to develop a mental disorder, environment stress is needed to trigger the condition
What is the biological treatment to OCD?
Drug therapy (SSRI)
What does SSRI stand for?
Selective serotonin re uptake inhibitor
What does SSRIs do?
Increases the levels of serotonin in the synapse
What is an alternative drugs to SSRIs?
SNRIs
(serotonin noradrenaline re uptake inhibitor)
What are the 3 evaluations of drug therapies for OCD?
Serious side effects
- Loss of sex drive
- Blurred vision
Inexpensive
- cheap to manufacture
Non-disruptive
- quick to take
- simply a drug
HOWEVER,
- must be taken consistently
When has deviation from social norms been used
Schizoptypal personality disorder
Limitation of deviation from social norms
cultural and situational relativism
(hearing voices and aggression in deal making)
Limitation of deviation from social norms
Cultural and situational relativism
(Hearing voices and aggression in corporate deal making)
Limitation of failure to function adequately
Easy to list non-standard lifestyles choices as abnormal
People who make unusual choices can be listed as abnormal
Way to remember phobia characteristics
UFA DIS PEA
Way to remember DEPRESSION characteristics
SAMSADDAC
What did Watson and Rayner do
Little albert phobia on white rats
Who did the Little albert phobia on white rats
Watson and Rayner
What was the Little albert phobia on white rats
Albert conditioned to fear white rats
- Rat presented had iron bar bang led to conditioned response of fear
Same response to similar furry objects, fur coat, non-white rabbit etc
Who and what was the evidence linking phobias to traumatic events
Jongh et al
fear of dental treatment 73% had a traumatic experience compared to the 21% control no trauma group
3 stages in systematic desensitisation
The anxiety hierarchy
Relaxation - Reciprocal inhibition
Exposure
Who and what was the evidence for effectiveness of SD
Gilroy et al
Follow up spider phobia SD ppl
42ppl with 3 45min sessions
SD group was less fearful compared to control group
define musturbation is Elisis’s ABC model
The belief we must always succeed and achieve perfection
define utopiansim is Elisis’s ABC model
The belief that life is always meant to be fair
define endogenous depression and its link to elisis’s ABC model
Endogenous depression is not traceable to a life event therefore has no activation event
What does the client become in CBT when set hw
Client as scientist
What 2 types of arguments are used in REBT
Empirical - Whether there is actual evidence to support
Logical - Whether the thought follows from facts
What did Taylor et al say about CBT
When used appropriately, CBT can be effective for people with learning disabilities
What does it mean by OCD is polygenic
Caused by a combination of genetic variations that together increase vulnerability
TKD
Who and what found a link between OCD being polygenic
Steven Taylor
OCD caused by 230 different genes
- Dopamine and serotonin as mood regulating neurotransmitters
Define aetiologically heterogenous in OCD being genetic
The origins of OCD may differ from one person to another
What neurotransmitter is key in the neural explanation of ocd?
Serotonin
Explain the serotonin link to OCD
Low activity rates of serotonin in the brain causes OCD
What brain part functions abnormally with OCD?
The parahippocampul gyrus (processor of unpleasant emotions)
What is linked to ocd in the neural explanation
Decision-making systems
abnormal functioning frontal lobes
Name and explain an alternative to SSRIs
SNRIs
Same thing but also with noradrenaline
What is SSRI?
An antidepressant that increases serotonin
How do SSRIs work?
S released by nerve cells (presynaptic neurons) passes synapse to stimulate the next nerve cell (postsynaptic neuron).
SSRIs block reabsorption, so more serotonin stays in the synapse, which helps improve communication between nerve cells and reduces OCD symptoms.
An example of an SSRI and its dosage
fluoxetine (Prozac)
20 mg daily dosage
What nerve cell releases serotonin?
presynaptic neurons
What do many people with OCD also suffer from (Co-morbity)?
Clinical depression
Who did the research into depression relapse rates
Ali et al
What did Ali et al find in depression relapse rates?
CBT clients every month for a year
42% relapsed within 6 months and 53% within a year of ending treatment
What is recipricol inhibition in?
Relaxation for phobias systematic desensitisaion
