review questions from textbook

Question 1

What are the criteria used by mental health professionals to define abnormal behaviour?

Answer 1

Psychologists generally consider behaviour abnormal when it meets some combination of the following criteria: (1) unusual; (2) socially unacceptable or in violation of social norms;( 3) fraught with misperceptions or misinterpretations of reality; (4) associated with states of severe personal distress; (5) maladaptive or self-defeating; and (6) dangerous

Question 2

What are psychological disorders?

Answer 2

Psychological disorders (also called mental disorders) involve abnormal behaviour patterns associated with disturbances in mental health or psychological functioning.

Question 3

How are cultural beliefs and norms related to the classification and understandings of abnormal behaviour?

Answer 3

Behaviours deemed normal in one culture may be considered abnormal in another. Concepts of health and illness may have different meanings indifferent cultures. Abnormal behaviour patterns may also take different forms in different cultures, and societal views or models explaining abnormal behaviour vary across cultures as well

Question 4

What is the distinguishing feature of the biological perspectives on abnormal behaviour?

Answer 4

Biological perspectives focus on the biological underpinnings of abnormal behaviour, including the roles of genetics, neurotransmitter functioning, and brain abnormalities and defects