Psychopathology - Defintions Of Abnormality AO3 Flashcards
What is a positive of statistical infrequency?
A positive evaluation of using statistical infrequency to define abnormality is those individuals who are assessed as being abnormal have been evaluation objectively; this is better than other definitions that depend of the subjective opinion of a clinician, for example, deciding if the client is coping or not is a vague concept, and two observers may disagree.
What is a negative of statistical infrequency?
A criticism of statistical infrequency is not all statistically rare traits are negative; this definition also includes those people at te higher end of intelligence. IQs of 130 are just as statistically rare as IQs of 70. A good definition of abnormality should not identify people with high intelligence as having a psychopathological disorder and in need of additional support.
What is a strength of failure to function adequately?
One positive aspect of the failure to function definition is that it respects the individual and their own experience, which is something that other definitions, such as statistical infrequency and deviation from social norms, cannot do, as these definitions of abnormality are based on what is normal in the rest of the population.
What is a negative of failure to function adequately?
A criticism is FFA only includes people who cannot cope; psychopaths can often function in society in ways that benefit them personally. Having lower empathy can lead to success in business and politics. However, while they feel no distress themselves, psychopathy often has negative implications for the people around them.
What is a negative of deviation from social norms?
A criticism is it can be inappropriate to define people who move to a new culture as abnormal according to the cultural norms. People from an Afro-Caribbean background living in the UK are seven times as likely to develop schizophrenia than people living in Afro-Caribbean nations.
What is a positive of deviation from social norms?
A positive evaluation for defining abnormality according to social norms is ti does not impose a western view of abnormality on other non-western cultures. For this reason, it is argued diagnosing abnormality according to social norms is not ethnocentric; it respects the cultural differences between societies.
