psychopathology Flashcards
what are the four definitions of abnormality
- statistical infrequency
- deviation from social norms
- failure to function adequately
- deviation from ideal mental health
what is statistical infrequency
- defining abnormality in terms of statistic
- behaviour that is rarely seen is abnormal
e. g IQ and intellectual disability disorder; those whose score below 70 are statistically unusual or ‘abnormal’ and are diagnosed with intellectual disability disorder
what is deviation from social norms
- abnormality is based on social context; when a person behaves in a way that is differnt from how they expected to behave they may be defined as abnormal.
- historical differences within society; e.g. homosexuality is viewed as abnormal in some cultures may not be considered abnormal in our society.
what is failure to function adequately
- inability to cope with everyday living e.g. not being able to hold down a job
- Rosenhan and seligman proposed signs of failure to cope; experience personal distress, behave in irrational or dangerous ways.
e. g. having a very low IQ is a statistical infrequency but diagnosis would not be made on this basis alone, there would have to be clear signs that, as a result of this, the person would not be bale to cope with the demands of every day living.
what is deviation from ideal mental health
looking at what makes someone psychologically healthy, and then identifying anyone who deviates from this ideal.
-Jahoda listed criteria for ideal mental health; 1. we have no symptoms or distress 2.we are rational and perceive ourselves accurately 3. we can cope with stress 4. we are independent of other people 5. we can self-actualise etc
A03- evaluate failure to function adequately
strengths ;
failure to function adequately recognised the patient’s perspective - may not be entirely satisfactory approach because it is difficult to assess distress. However, the definition acknowledges that the experience of the patient is important. it captures the experience of many people who need help and is useful for assessing abnormality
weaknesses;
x a limitation is that this is the same as deviation from social norms; it can be hard to say when someone is really failing to function or just deviating from social norms. people who live alternative lifestyles or do extreme sports could be seen as behaving maladaptively. if we treat these behaviours as ‘failure’ or adequate functioning we may limit freedom.
x subjective judgement; someone has to judge whether a patient is distressed or distressing. some patients may say they are distressed but may be judged as not suffering. there are methods for making such judgements as objective as possible, including checklists such as the Global assessment of functioning scale. however, the principle remains whether someone has the right to make judgement.
A03 -evaluation of deviation from ideal mental health
strengths;
- deviation from ideal mental health is comprehensive; the definition covers a broad range of criteria for mental health. it probably covers most of the reasons someone would seek help from mental health services or be referred for help. The sheer range of factors discussed in relation to Jahoda’s criteria make it a good tool for thinking about mental health.
weaknesses;
x definition may be culturally relative; some of the ideas in Jahoda’s classification of ideal mental health are specific to Western cultures. e.g typical to individualistic cultures and are culturally specific.
x unrealistically high standard for mental health;
very few people will attain all Jahodas criteria for mental health. therefore
