Quiz 1 Flashcards
Psychopathology (definition)
The study of mental illness
3 Parts/Criteria of a ‘Psychological Disorder’
1) Dysfunction (breakdown of cognitive, emotional, or behavior functioning)
2) Distress/Impairment (significant and interfering)
3) Atypical response (not culturally expected based on age and other contexts)
3 Parts of Studying psychological disorders
1) Description: presenting the problem. can see dysfunction or not.
2) Causation (etiology): the many possible causes!
3) Treatment and outcome: what treatment helps? can learn more about the disorder itself.
Prevalence (clinical psych meaning)
How common the disorder is among population (available in DSM 5)
Incidence (clinical psych meaning)
How many new cases of a disorder within a time frame (less than prevalence)
Age of onset
Insidious vs. Acute onset
Age when symptoms appear.
Insidious: a gradual development
Acute: sudden development
Course (clinical psych meaning)
chronic v. episodic v. time-limited
Patterns of change in a disorder.
Chronic: continues for a long-period
Episodic: comes and goes; recurring over time
Time-limited: short-lasting
Prognosis
The predicted future development of a disorder over time.
3 Main Historical Conceptions of Psychopathology
1) Supernatural
2) Biological
3) Psychological
How was illness conceived in the Persian Empire?
As the work of the devil (both physical and mental)
What were some treatments according to the supernatural conception of psychopathology?
Exorcism, torture, etc.
When did more humane treatments start to emerge in the history of treating mental illness?
Around the 15th century
Paracelsus
A Swiss physician who claimed that mental illness is affected by the pull of moon and stars. Lunatic from luna.
Hippocrates influence on psychopathology
The father of modern western medicine. Saw the brain as the origin of wisdom/intelligence/consciousness/emotion.
Who (first) saw heredity, the passing of genes, as a possibility in life?
Hippocrates
What is the Hippocratic-Galen approach?
Galen built on Hippocrates.
Humoral theory: a disease is too much or too little humors
What culture was the humoral theory influenced by?
Chinese (yin-yang)
How did Descartes and Willis differ to Locke in conceiving the root problem of mental illness?
Descartes and Willis said the NS or brain is the problem.
Locke says it’s the mind rather than the brain.
Emil Kraepelin
Important in improving the classification of diagnoses, making treatments more specified.
What negative outcome did moral therapy initially have?
Moral therapy is empathy and humane care. Led to overcrowding.
Who was Freud’s teacher and what did they do?
Charcot. Hypnosis approach to treat mental illness
What are defense mechanisms?
How the ego manages anxiety when the id/superego conflict (according to Freud)
What’s Freud’s view of psychopathology based on development?
Conflicts within the psychosexual development stages.
What are some therapy approaches by Freud?
What does science say about this approach?
Catharsis, free association, dream analysis, transference
Little evidence of effectiveness and is costly
Carl Jung vs. Freud
Rejected sexual drives. Spiritual and religious approach. Collective unconscious
Alfred Adler’s theory on human behavior
People strive for superiority
Psychodynamic Therapy (vs. Psychoanalysis)
Less dream analysis, more expression of emotions, experiences, wishes.
2 Main people of Humanistic theory
Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow
Carl Rogers main ideas
Innate tendency for growth, unconditional positive regard.
What group of people might humanistic theory be useful for?
People with mild symptoms or those without disorders.
Joseph Wolpe (what contributions?)
Behavior therapy - systematic desensitization
Skinner’s approach
Operant conditioning
What has the cognitive-behavioral model helped with in psychopathology?
Treating disorders like anxiety (associations of irrational things)
What’s wrong with the word ‘Abnormal’ when describing mental illness?
Disorders are common across the lifetime, so they’re technically not abnormal.
People are already stigmatized, this might just add to it.
How was mental disorders conceived in the 14th century?
Some kind of evil root, the work of devil/witches (Catholic Church power)
Nicholas Oresme
A French Philosopher, Middle Ages.
Saw melancholy as a source of atypical behavior
Hippocrates’ view on Hysteria
Uterus moving around in the body caused psychological symptoms
When did Hippocrates-Galen thought extend until?
19th century
John P. Grey
Believed mental illness had physical roots (1800s). Led to better care in psychiatric patients.
Anna Freud’s theories
Ego Psychology
Defensive reactions of the ego determines behavior.
Heinz Kohut’s theories
Self-Psychology
Formation of self-concept allows individual to progress toward health/neurosis
Diathesis
A vulnerability to a disorder
