Psychopathology L1 - 4 (Abnormalities) Flashcards
Deviation from social norms:
Any behaviour that doesn’t follow accepted social norms
How do norms, values and accepted way to behave vary?
They vary from culture to culture and time period to period
What does deviation from social norms focus on?
- The impact of one’s behaviour on others
- How desirable the behaviour is
Positives of deviation from social norms as a definition of abnormality:
- Distinguishes difference between desirable and non-desirable behaviour
- Could lead to progression/change
- Increases our understanding + knowledge of mental disorders
Negatives of deviation from social norms as a definition of abnormality:
- Context must be considered
- It does not clearly indicate someone has a psychological abnormality
Failure to function adequately:
Model of abnormality where a person is unable to cope with day to day life because they are experiencing psychological discomfort
What is used to assess social, occupational + psychological functioning?
GAF (Global Assessment of Functioning Scale)
Who proposed the 7 criteria, what are they (SUMOVIV) and what does the score mean?
Proposed by Rosenhan + Seligman. The higher the score, the more abnormal. 7 criteria:
- Suffering –> suffering due to abnormality
- Unpredictability + Loss of control –> variable, sometimes inappropriate behaviour
- Maladaptiveness –> can’t achieve major life goals
- Observer Discomfort –> others feel discomfort when they break social norms
- Unconventionality + Vividness –> behave very differently to normal people
- Irrationality + Incomprehensibility –> unclear why they would act that way
- Violation of moral standards –> abnormal if they break moral standards
What are the evaluations (however…) of the 7 criteria?
- Suffering –> Expected in some contexts
- Unpredictability –> Some behave like this eg. After binge-drinking
- Maladaptiveness –> Could also be due to a lack of relevant knowledge
- Observer Discomfort –> Could be due to cultural differences
- Unconventionality –> Could non-conformists/eccentrics
- Irrationality –> Could just be unclear to us due to lack of knowledge
- Violation of moral standards –> Standards may be out of date/ approved by minority leaders
Positives of failure to function adequately as a definition of abnormality:
- Psychologists can assess degree of abnormality with the criteria
Negatives of failure to function adequately as a definition of abnormality:
- Abnormality is not always accompanied by dysfunction eg. Ted Bundy
- Model is subjective and difficult to measure/analyse
- Context is significant for some of the criteria
Statistical infrequency:
When an individual possesses a less common, rare characteristic than most of the population
How can statistical infrequency be displayed?
On a Normal Distribution Curve
Features of a left-skewed graph:
- Negative skewness
- Tail of distribution lies to left
- Mean + median have lesser value than mode
- Scores concentrated to right of distribution
Features of a right-skewed graph:
- Positive skewness
- Tail of distribution lies to right
- Mean and median have a greater value than mode
- Scores are concentrated to left of distribution
Positives of statistical infrequency:
- Statistical infrequency can be a good thing
- Judgements are based on objective, scientific and unbiased data
Negatives of statistical infrequency:
- Labels some as abnormal, which can negatively affect self-confidence
- Subjective cut-off point that can be questioned
What is deviation from ideal mental health based on?
- the Humanist approach, which focuses on motivation + self-development
- the ‘Hierarchy of needs’ devised by Maslow whereby humans’ basic needs are met first before other things
Who devised deviation from ideal mental health?
Marie Jahoda
What is self-actualisation?
Humans should strive to reach their full potential
6 criteria of positive mental health (APPIES)
- Autonomy –> independent of social influence
- Perception of reality –> no distortion of reality, w/ empathy + social sensitivity
- Personal growth –> self-actualisation
- Integration –> cope w/ stressful situations
- Environmental mastery –> well-adapted to environment
- Self-attitudes –> high self esteem + sense of identity
Strengths of deviation from ideal mental health:
- Positive and productive, as criteria provides a therapeutic goal for humans
- Can highlight + target areas of dysfunction for psychologists
Weaknesses of deviation from ideal mental health:
- Abstract and difficult to define/measure
- Very few people can obtain all six criteria at once
