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Psychopathology Flashcards

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1
Q

What is the most obvious way to define abnormality?

A

By statistical deviation/infrequency - works by defining abnormality in terms of number of times behaviour is observed generally

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2
Q

Give an example of statistical deviation

A

IQ & intellectual disability disorder

  1. IQ is normally distributed
  2. Average IQ is 100 and for most its between 85-115. Only 2% have score below 70 (they are statistically unusual and diagnosed with intellectual disability disorder
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3
Q

What is ‘abnormal’ behaviour according to the statistical definition?

A

Behaviour that is rare/not typical as it shows a statistical infrequency

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4
Q

Evaluate research into defining abnormality using the statistical deviation definition

A

Strengths
1. Real life application: Intellectual disability disorder demonstrates how statistical infrequencies can be used to compare symptoms with norm, so its useful in clinical assessment

Limitations

  1. Inconsistency: IQ scores over 130 are not regarded as undesirable and requiring treatment, but are still unusual, so statistical infrequencies cant be used here
  2. Labelling: Labelling someone as abnormal may have a negative effect on way others view them and the way they see themselves (can affect self esteem)
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5
Q

What is the 2nd way of defining abnormality?

A

By deviation from social norms - when a person behaves in a way that is different to the accepted standards of behaviour in a society

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6
Q

Why are there only few behaviours that would be considered universally abnormal?

A

Because social norms and accepted standards of behaviour would be different for each society (and hence, definitions of abnormality are related to cultural context)

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7
Q

Give an example of a disorder that would be considered abnormal?

A

Antisocial personality disorder (APD or a psychopath) - a failure to conform to ‘lawful and culturally normative ethical behaviour’
- A psychopath generally lacks empathy. Therefore, they are abnormal as they deviate from social norms.

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8
Q

Evaluate research into defining abnormality using the social norms definition

A

Strengths
- APD shows that there is a place for deviation from social norms in defining abnormality

Limitations

  • Not sole explanation: Failure to function explanation may also account
  • People often forget that social norms are culturally relative: Person from 1 culture may label someone else (e.g. who has emigrated) as abnormal due to their behaviour being different to social norms in current culture.
  • Can lead to human rights abuses: Modern abnormal classifications are abuses of ppl’s right to be different (e.g. drapetomania and nymphomania)
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9
Q

What does ‘failure to function adequately’ refer to and give a few examples?

A

It refers to when a person crosses the line between normal and abnormal at the point that they cant deal with the demands of everyday life
- e.g. not being able to hold down a job, maintain relationships or maintain basic standards of hygiene

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10
Q

What were Rosenhan and Seligman known for?

A

They are known for proposing signs of someone being unable to cope

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11
Q

Give a few signs of someone being unable to cope?

A
  1. They no longer conform to interpersonal rules, e.g. maintaining personal space
  2. They experience personal distress
  3. They behave in a way that is irrational or dangerous
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12
Q

What must be present in order to diagnose someone with intellectual personality disorder?

A
  1. A statistical infrequency

2. An inability to cope

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13
Q

Evaluate the ‘failure to function adequately’ explanation

A

Strengths
1. Recognises patients perspective: It acknowledges that a patients experience is important soo you know more about the individual before you determine whether they are unable to cope and/or are abnormal

Limitations

  1. Could just be a deviation from social norms: People who live extreme lifestyles could be seen as behaving maladaptively so labelling them as ‘failing to function adequately’ could limit personal freedom
  2. Subjective judgement: Whilst there are methods to make judgements as objective as possible, e.g. checklists such as ‘global assessment of functioning scale’, psychiatrists can still make judgements, that are inconsistent and unaccurate
  3. Distress: It is difficult to assess distress
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14
Q

What is another way of defining abnormality?

A

Deviation from ideal mental health: occurs when someone does not meet a set of criteria for good mental health

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15
Q

WHO listed a set of criteria for good mental health?

A

Jahoda

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16
Q

What was included in the set of criteria?

A
  1. No symptoms/distress
  2. We are rational and perceive ourselves accurately
  3. We self-actualise
  4. Can cope with stress
  5. Have a realistic view of the world
  6. Have good self-esteem and lack guilt
  7. We are independent of other ppl
  8. We can successfully work, love and enjoy our leisure
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17
Q

Give an example that shows an overlap between ‘failure to function adequately’ and ‘deviation from ideal mental health’

A

Someones inability to keep a job may be a sign of being unable to cope with pressures of life (failure to function) or as a deviation from the ideal of successfully working

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18
Q

Evaluate the idea of ‘deviation from ideal mental health’ to define abnormality

A

Strengths
1. Its comprehensive: Covers a broad range of criteria for mental health, so its useful in diagnosals and the ways in which ppl could benefit from seeking help is made clear

Limitation

  1. Culturally relative: Self actualisation may be considered ‘self indulgent’ in collectivist cultures so Jahodas criteria may only cater to individualist cultures
  2. Unrealistically high standard: Very few would attain all of Jahodas criteria, so this approach may see most of us as abnormal
  3. Labelling: can lead to discrimination at work
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19
Q

Describe the behavioural characteristics of phobias

PAE-RA-SIC

A

(PAE)

  1. Panic: may involve crying/screaming/running away
  2. Avoidance: Considerable effort to avoid coming into contact with phobic stimulus. This can make it hard to go about daily life

(ALTERNATIVE TO AVOIDANCE: ENDURANCE)

  1. Endurance: Remaining in contact with phobic stimulus but experiencing high levels of anxiety
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20
Q

Describe the emotional characteristics of phobias

A

(RA)

  1. Responses are unreasonable: Response is widely disproportionate to threat posed e.g. fear response from small spider
  2. Anxiety and fear
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21
Q

Describe the cognitive characteristics of phobias

A

(SIC)

  1. Selective attention: Phobic finds it hard to look away from phobic stimulus
  2. Irrational beliefs
  3. Cognitive distortions: Phobic’s perceptions of phobic stimulus would be distorted in a negative way
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22
Q

Describe the behavioural characteristics of depression

ADA-LA-PAA

A

(ADA)

  1. Activity levels: Reduced levels of energy (lethargy)
  2. Disruption to sleep and eating behaviour: May suffer from insomnia/hypersomnia, and appetite may increase/decrease, leading to weight gain/loss
  3. Aggression and self-harm: may be verbally aggressive to others and physically aggressive to self
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23
Q

Describe the emotional characteristics of depression

A

(LA)

  1. Lowered mood/self-esteem: May feel ‘worthless’ or ‘empty’
  2. Anger: Can lead to aggression/self harm
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24
Q

Describe the cognitive characteristics of depression

A

(PAA)

  1. Poor conc: May find it difficult to complete a task as they usually would
  2. Attending to/dwelling on negative: only recalling unhappy events
  3. Absolutist thinking: Awfulise situation
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25
Q

Describe the behavioural characteristics of OCD

CA-GAA-COI

A

(CA)

  1. Compulsions: Actions carried out REPEATEDLY in order to reduce ANXIETY
  2. Avoidance: Sufferers avoid situations that trigger anxiety
26
Q

Describe the emotional characteristics of OCD

A

(GAA)

  1. Guilt and disgust: Irrational guilt over minor issue, or disgust towards oneself or something external e.g dirt
  2. Anxiety and distress: Obsessive thoughts are unpleasant and frightening, and anxiety can be overwhelming
  3. Accompanying depression
27
Q

Describe the cognitive characteristics of OCD

A

(COI)

  1. Cognitive strategies to deal with obsessions and reduce anxiety: e.g. meditating/praying
  2. Obsessive thoughts: 90% of OCD sufferers have obsessive thoughts
  3. Insight into excessive anxiety: sufferers are aware of irrational behaviour but continue due to their anxiety
  4. Hypervigilance
28
Q

What is the two-process model?

A

A model that suggests we acquire phobias through classical conditioning and maintain them through operant conditioning

29
Q

How did Watson and Raynor cause a conditioned response in Little Albert?

(DIAGRAM)

A

Noise (UCS) ———- Fear (UCR)
Noise (UCS) + white rat (NS) ———— Fear (UCR)
White rat (CS) ———– Fear (CS)

30
Q

What usually occurs after the classical conditioning phobia process and use an example

A

Generalisation of fear to other stimuli e.g Albert to fur coat and Santa Clause mask

31
Q

Describe how operant conditoning explains how we maintain phobias

A
  1. Operant conditioning happens when our behaviour is being reinforced/punished
  2. Negative reinforcement: an individual produces behaviour to avoid something unpleasant
    - e.g. phobic avoids phobic stimulus to escape anxiety
    - This reduction in fear negatively reinforces the avoidance behaviour and the phobia is maintained `
32
Q

Evaluate the two-process model

A

Strengths
1. Good application: Can be used in therapy. If patient is prevented from practising avoidance behaviour, then phobia may decline

Limitations:

  1. Alternative explanations: Two-process model says that avoidance is motivated by anxiety reduction but in complex phobias, avoidance behaviour may be motivated more by positive feelings/safety. e.g. agoraphobics
  2. Incomplete: Doesnt account for fact that we acquire phobias more easily if things are danger (biological preparedness)
  3. Not all bad experiences lead to phobias
  4. Doesnt consider cognitive aspects: Ignores cognitive element of phobias
33
Q

Name 2 ways of treating phobias

A
  1. Systematic desensitisation

2. Flooding

34
Q

What is the main idea behind systematic desensitisation?

A

Gradually reducing anxiety through counterconditioning
- CS is paired with relaxation so it becomes the new CR

Reciprocal inhibition: it is not possible to be afraid and relaxed at the same time, so one emotion prevents the other

35
Q

What does systematic desensitisation involve?

A

It involves:

  1. Formation of anxiety hierarchy: This is a list of fearful stimuli, arranged from most to least frightening
  2. Relaxation practised at each level of hierarchy: Patient taught relaxation techniques e.g. meditating, and then exposed to stimulus at relaxed state
  3. Takes place over several sessions, starting at bottom of hierarchy.
36
Q

When do you know that systematic desensitisation is successful?

A

When the patient can stay relaxed in situations high on the hierarchy

37
Q

What does flooding involve?

A

It involves placing a patient in a situation with their phobic stimulus, without a gradual build-up

38
Q

What is the main idea behind flooding?

A

Without the option of avoidance behaviour, patient reaches highest level of adrenaline, and quickly learns that a phobic object is harmless (extinction)

39
Q

What should you consider before carrying out flooding techniques?

A

Ethical guidelines

Must gain informed consent from patients. They must be fully prepared and know what to expect

40
Q

Evaluate the treatment of phobias using the behavioural approach

A

Strengths

  1. Its effective: Researcher found that, after months, SD arachnophobics were less fearful than control group that were just treated with relaxation.
  2. SD is suitable for diverse range: People with learning difficulties may not understand whats happening during flooding or engage with cognitive therapies
  3. SD is preferred: This is reflected through low refusal rates and low attrition rates (number of patients dropping out of treatment). SD causes less trauma, and some parts are pleasant e.g. talking to therapist.

Limitations

  1. Flooding is less effective for complex phobias: Complex phobias e.g. social phobia, have cognitive aspects, and flooding only uses behavioural techniques
  2. Can be ineffective: It can be a traumatic experience for patients, so they’re often unwilling to see it through to the end, wasting time and money
41
Q

Give examples of 2 theories/models that make up the cognitive approach to explaining depression

A
  1. Beck’s cognitive theory of depression

2. Ellis’s ABC model

42
Q

Describe Beck’s cognitive theory of depression

A
  1. Faulty info processing: When depressed ppl attend to (-)’s aspects of situation and ignore (+)’s, they also tend to blow small problems out of proportion and think in black and white terms
  2. Negative self-schemas: A person with a negative self-schema would interpret all info about themselves in a negative way
  3. Negative triad:
    - Negative views of world
    - Negative view of future
    - Negative view of the self
43
Q

Describe Ellis’s ABC model

A

A (activating event): Depression first occurs when we experience negative events e.g. failing an important test
B (beliefs): This triggers irrational beliefs
C (consequences): Emotional and behavioural consequences ensues e.g depression

44
Q

Evaluate the cognitive approach to explain depression

A

Strengths

  1. Beck has good supporting evidence: Grazioli and Terry found that women who were judged to have high cognitive vulnerability were more likely to suffer from post-natal depression.
  2. Beck’s theory has practical application: CBT

Limitations:

  1. Doesnt explain all aspects of depression: Some depressed patients are very angry, have hallucinations, and bizarre beliefs. Beck cant explain this
  2. Ellis’s model is incomplete: Only explains ‘reactive depression’, but doesnt explain depression that arises without an activating event
  3. Cognitions may not cause all aspects of depression: Other theories see anxiety and distress as root of depression (behavioural)
45
Q

What is the aim of Beck’s cognitive therapy?

A

To identify negative thoughts about the self, the world and the future - the negative triad.
- These thoughts must be challenged by the patient taking an active role in their treatment

46
Q

What does Becks cognitive therapy encourage the patient to do?

A

To test reality of irrational beliefs by acting as the ‘scientist’ and recording when they enjoyed an event and/or when people were nice to them
- In future sessions, if patients say that no-one is nice to them or there’s no point in going on, therapist can produce evidence to prove patients belief as incorrect

47
Q

What is involved in Ellis’s Rational Emotive Behavioural Therapy (REBT)?

A
  1. ABC model is extended to ABCDE model (D for dispute of irrational beliefs and E for effect)
  2. Patient may talk about how unfair life is, and an REBT therapist would identify this as utopianism and challenge is as an irrational belief by using:
    - Empirical argument: Disputing whether there is evidence to support irrational belief
    - Logical argument: Disputing whether negative thought actually follows from facts
48
Q

What is the aim of behavioural activation?

A

To work with depressed individuals to gradually decrease avoidance/isolation, and increase their engagement in activities that have been shown to increase mood e.g. exercising

49
Q

Evaluate the effectiveness of CBT

A

Strengths
1. Evidence: Researchers compared effects of CBT, with antidepressant drugs, and a combination of both. They found that CBT was just as effective as drugs and even more helpful when given WITH drugs

Limitations:

  1. Success may be due to therapist-patient relationship
  2. May not work for severe depression cases: Some patients cant motivate themselves to take on hard cognitive work required for CBT
  3. Some patients want to explore past: ‘Present-focus’ in CBT may ignore an important aspect of depressed patients experience
  4. Overemphasis on cognition: Patients may need to change the situation their in e.g suffering abuse, in order to be treated, but focus on cognitive aspect may disrupt that
50
Q

What 2 explanations make up the biological approach in explaining OCD?

A
  1. Genetic explanation

2. Neural explanation

51
Q

Describe the genetic explanation in explaining OCD?

A
  1. Candidate genes - specific genes can create vulnerability for OCD, Serotonic genes e.g. SHT1-D and dopamine genes. These are both neurotransmitters that have a role in regulating mood
  2. OCD is polygenic: caused by several genes interacting
  3. Different types of OCD: 1 group of genes can cause OCD in 1 person but different group of genes can cause OCD in another person (aetiologically heterogeneous). Suggesting that different types of OCD, can be the result of genetic variations
52
Q

Describe the neural explanation in explaining OCD?

A
  1. Low levels of serotonin lowers mood: If person has low levels of serotonin, normal transmission of mood-relevant info doesnt take place and mood is affected
  2. Decision-making systems in frontal lobes impaired: Some OCD Cases e.g. hoarding, is associated with abnormal functioning of the lateral (side) frontal lobes of brain, which are responsible for logical thinking and decision making
  3. Parahippocampal gyrus is dysfunctional in OCD: this part is responsible for processing unpleasant emotions
53
Q

Evaluate the genetic explanation for OCD

A

Strengths
1. Twin Study Support: Nestadt et al found that 68% of MZ shared OCD, as opposed to 31% of DZ twins

Limitations

  1. Too many candidate genes: Several genes interacting makes it hard to pinpoint each one involved
  2. Environmental factors: Researchers found that over half pps with OCD had traumatic events in past. This is more useful as we are able to do something about environmental factors
54
Q

What is the diasthesis-stress model?

A

A model that suggests that environmental factors play a larger role in OCD

55
Q

Evaluate the neural explanation for OCD

A

Strengths
- Supporting evidence: Antidepressants that work on serotonin system are effective in reducing OCD symptoms, suggesting serotonin is involved.

Limitations
- Serotonin may not be direct cause: Many OCD patients also suffer with depression, which is also linked to a disruption of serotonin system. So no clear link between OCD and serotonin system

56
Q

What does drug therapy for OCD aim to do?

A

It aims to increase the levels of serotonin in the brain or to increase its activity

57
Q

What are selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIS)?

A

They are drugs that prevent the reabsorption and breakdown of serotonin in the brain. This increases its levels in the synapse and thus, serotonin continues to stimulate the postsynaptic neuron

58
Q

What is the typical advice when useing fluoxetine?

A
  • Typical dosage: 20mg but this may be increases if it is not benefitting the patient
  • Time to work: 3-4 month
59
Q

What is SSRI’S often combined with, during treatment for OCD, and why?

A

They are often combined with CBT as the drugs reduce a patients emotional symptoms, e.g anxiety or depression, so that patient can engage more effectively with CBT

60
Q

Describe alternative to SSRI’s?

A
  1. Tricyclics: Like SSRI’s but can have more severe side effects
  2. SNRI’s: Increases levels of serotonin as well as noradrenaline
61
Q

Evaluate the treatment of OCD using the biological approach

A

Strengths

  1. Drug therapy is effective: Research found that SSRIs showed better results than placebos, in 17/17 studies comparing them
  2. Drugs are cost-effective and non-disruptive: They’re usually cheaper and more convenient than therapy as they dont take time out of patients daily life

Limitations:

  1. Side-effects: Some SSRI’s can cause indigestion, blurred vision, loss of sex drive, so people stop taking them
  2. Evidence is unreliable: drug treatments can be biased as they’re sponsored by drug companies who dont report all evidence about its effectiveness
  3. Some cases of OCD follow trauma: In these instances, psychological therapies would be best, as opposed to biological treatments

AS Psychology (7 decks)

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