Psychopathology Key Words

Question 1

ABC model

Answer 1

Ellis’s explanation for how irrational thoughts affect behaviour A= activating event, B=beliefs, C= consequences

Question 2

Agoraphobia

Answer 2

Irrational fear of being outside or in a public place

Question 3

Avoidance

Answer 3

The act of staying away from something (e.g. the phobic object or situation)

Question 4

Basal ganglia

Answer 4

Region of the brain involved in the coordination of movement that has been linked to OCD

Question 5

Benzodiazepines

Answer 5

Antianxiety drugs used to treat OCD as they have a quietening effect on the brain and reduce anxiety caused by obsessive thoughts

Question 6

Bipolar depression

Answer 6

Condition where a person has periods of elevated mood (mania) as well as periods of depression

Question 7

Catastrophising

Answer 7

Cognitive error where you exaggerate a minor setback and turn it into a major disaster

Question 8

CBT

Answer 8

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy is a commonly used therapy which involves challenging and replacing irrational thoughts

Question 9

Cognitive bias

Answer 9

Error in thinking caused by simplified information processing

Question 10

Compulsion

Answer 10

An irresistible urge to behave in a certain way

Question 11

COMT gene

Answer 11

Gene which has a variation which results in higher levels of dopamine and this variation is more common in patients with OCD

Question 12

Counter-conditioning

Answer 12

Learning a new response to the phobic object/situation e.g. replacing fear with relaxation

Question 13

Cultural relativism

Answer 13

The idea that cultural norms and values are culture specific and no-one culture is superior to another culture

Question 14

Deviation from ideal mental health

Answer 14

Not meeting criteria which suggest you are mentally healthy

Question 15

Deviation from social norms

Answer 15

A behaviour that deviates from social norms is one that is very different from how we would expect people to behave

Question 16

Dopamine

Answer 16

Higher levels of this neurotransmitter have been associated with the compulsions show by OCD patients

Question 17

DSM-5

Answer 17

Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition is the standard classification of mental disorders used in the United States.

Question 18

Empirical dispute

Answer 18

REBT technique where the therapist seeks evidence for a person’s thoughts

Question 19

Failure to function adequately

Answer 19

When a person’s behaviour means they are unable to cope with the demands of everyday life

Question 20

Fear hierarchy

Answer 20

A list of situations related to the phobic object/situation arranged in order from least to most frightening

Question 21

Flooding (in-vitro)

Answer 21

Behavioural treatment for a phobia which involves imagined exposure to the phobic object/situation without being able to escape

Question 22

Flooding (in-vivo)

Answer 22

Behavioural treatment for a phobia which involves actual exposure to the phobic object/situation without being able to escape

Question 23

Hindsight bias

Answer 23

The way that social norms change over time

Question 24

ICD 10

Answer 24

The 10th revision of the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, produced by the World Health Organisation

Question 25

Logical dispute

Answer 25

REBT Technique where the therapies disputes the logic of a person’s thoughts

Question 26

Negative self-schemas

Answer 26

Negative information we hold about ourselves based on negative past experiences that can lead to cognitive biases

Question 27

Negative triad

Answer 27

Three types of negative thinking (self, the world and the future) that Beck suggested occur automatically in people who are depressed

Question 28

Obsession

Answer 28

An idea or thought that continually preoccupies or intrudes on a person’s mind.

Question 29

Orbitofrontal cortex

Answer 29

A region of the brain which converts sensory information into thoughts and actions- higher activity has been found here in OCD patients

Question 30

Overgeneralisation

Answer 30

Cognitive error where you make a sweeping conclusion from a single incident

Question 31

REBT

Answer 31

Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy is a type of CBT based on Ellis’s ABC model

Question 32

Selective attention

Answer 32

Focusing on one piece of information while ignoring other information viewed as irrelevant

Question 33

Serotonin

Answer 33

Neurotransmitter which regulates mood - lower levels are associated with OCD

Question 34

SERT gene

Answer 34

gene which affects the transport of serotonin, causing lower levels of serotonin which is associated with OCD

Question 35

Simple or specific phobia

Answer 35

Irrational fear of an object (e.g. spiders) or situation (e.g. flying)

Question 36

Social norm

Answer 36

The rules of behavior that are considered acceptable in a group or society

Question 37

Social phobia

Answer 37

Irrational fear of a social situation (e.g. speaking in public)

Question 38

SSRIs

Answer 38

Antidepressant drugs used to treat OCD which work by preventing the re-absorption and breakdown of serotonin

Question 39

Statistical infrequency

Answer 39

A behaviour that is statistically infrequent does not happen very often

Question 40

Systematic desensitisation

Answer 40

A behaviour therapy designed to gradually reduce a phobia through the principle of classical conditioning

Question 41

Two-process model

Answer 41

Behavioural explanation for phobias which suggests they are acquired through classical conditioning and maintained through operant conditioning

Question 42

Unipolar depression

Answer 42

A major depressive episode that occurs without the manic phase