Psychopathology - abnormality

Question 1

4 ways to define abnormality

Answer 1

Statistical infrequency, deviation from social norms, failure to function adequately, deviation from ideal mental health

Question 2

Statistical infrequency

Answer 2

Falls out of the typical/average range

Question 3

Limitations of statistical infrequency

Answer 3

Inflexible (illogical cut off points - 2.5%)
Behaviour can occur frequently (i.e depression - 25%)
Culture (cultural differences)
Characteristics can be positive (i.e IQ > 130 not considered abnormal when low scores are)

Question 4

Strength of statistical infrequency

Answer 4

Objective (mathematical nature -> no bias)
Representative (whole picture & population)
Useful (used in clinical practice - formal diagnoses & assessing symptom severity)
Benefits vs problems (benefit from abnormal classification i.e. low IQ -> access support services)

Question 5

Deviation from social norms

Answer 5

Violation of approved/accepted behaviour

Question 6

Limitations of DFSN

Answer 6

Change over time (legislation changes norms i.e. homosexuality 70s was a mental illness)
Cultural differences (variation of behaviours across cultures -> unclear what is abnormal)
Ethnic differences (behaviour acceptable in some communities but not whole cultures -> lack of understanding)
Sense of ‘rightness’ (society believing it is right and everyone else is wrong)

Question 7

Strengths of DfSN

Answer 7

Flexibility (dependent on age & situation)
Helps society (adherence to norms means society is ordered & predictable)
Useful (used within clinical practice & can be defining characteristic of disorders)

Question 8

Failure to function adequately

Answer 8

Unable to do everyday things & lead a normal life

Question 9

Limitations of FtFA

Answer 9

Too focused on individual (not a problem for the individual but for people around them)
Doesn’t stop functioning (focus on how they’re coping leads to missing abnormal behaviour -> may appear fine through fitting into society but have distorted thinking)
Everyday life varies (ability to cope depends on what everyday life is - varied across cultures - which leads to subjective definition

Question 10

Strengths of FtFA

Answer 10

Suggests free will (focused on individual’s perspective -> deem themself as abnormal and receive help)
Operationalised (GAF scale measuring -> objective decision about behaviour)
Falsifiable (Can be seen by others -> others can intervene and help the individual)
Practical applications (people seek help when symptoms are most severe -> help in targeting treatments and services)

Question 11

Deviation from ideal mental health

Answer 11

Absence of factors that indicate psychological well-being (Jahoda 1958)

Question 12

Limitations of DfIMH

Answer 12

Feasibility (Jahoda’s critera makes normality impossible -> majority of population would be abnormal by this definition)
Ethnocentrism (autonomy criteria makes collectivist cultures appear abnormal, non-western cultures would also appear abnormal by the criteria -> not global)
Subjectivity (vague criteria -> difficult to measure)

Question 13

Strengths of DfIMH

Answer 13

Positive (focuses on what is helpful & desirable for individual)
Useful (allows for clear goals to be set & focused on to achieve normality)
Comprehensive definition (provides a checklist to compare ourselves against & discuss issues with psychological professionals)