Study Guide Ch: 2 Flashcards
Biological model
2 difficulties - unknown etiology of mental illness; no independent means of verifying the existence of disease other than patient self-report in many cases
four lobes of the brain
the frontal, parietal, temporal, and occipital lobes
Central Nervous System (CNS)
the entire complex of neurons, axons, and supporting tissue that constitute the brain and spinal cord
endocrine system
series of glands that produce chemical substances known as hormones
neurotransmitters (NTs)
chemical messengers in the body
neurotransmission
the process by which neurons communicate with one another across synapses using neurotransmitters
Electroconvulsive Shock Therapy (ECT)
is a procedure, done under general anesthesia, in which small electric currents are passed through the brain, intentionally triggering a brief seizure.
Ttranscranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS)
a noninvasive procedure that uses magnetic fields to stimulate nerve cells in the brain to improve symptoms of depression.
psychosurgery
Psychosurgery is a type of surgery in which brain physiology is attempted to be altered by severing connections between the areas involved in the abnormal function or behavioral states of some intractable mental disorders.
big 4 neurotransmitters involved in psychopathology and the mental illnesses
- gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA): anxiety disorders (d/o’s)
- norepinephrine (NE): anxiety d/o’s
- serotonin (SE): depression
- dopamine (DA): schizophrenia
Antidepressants (SSNRI)
selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors
Antidepressants (SNRIs)
serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors
Antidepressants (MAOIs)
monoamine oxidase inhibitors
Antidepressants Tricyclics
preventing the reabsorption of neurotransmitters called serotonin and norepinephrine.
names of commonly prescribed antidepressants
Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil, Celexa, and Wellbutrin
Antipsychotic
also known as major tranquilizers, phenothiazines, or neuroleptics traditional/1st generation and atypical/2nd generation antipsychotics
commonly prescribed antipsychotics
Abilify
Geodon
Seroquel
Haldol
Thorazine
Zyprexa
Mood stabilizers
is a psychiatric medication used to treat mood disorders characterized by intense and sustained mood shifts
commonly prescribed mood stabilizers
Lithium
Lamictal
Luvox
Depakote
Tegretol
Anti-anxiety
a category of drugs used to prevent anxiety and treat anxiety related to several anxiety disorders.
commonly prescribed anxiolytics
Ativan
Xanax
Librium
Valium
id
According to Freud, the psychological force that produces instinctual needs, drives, and impulses.
ego
According to Freud, the psychological force that employs reason and operates in accordance with the reality principle.
superego
According to Freud, the psychological force that represents a person’s values and ideals.
Oedipus Complex
Occurs during the phallic stage and is a conflict in which the boy wishes to possess his mother sexually and perceives his father to be a rival in love.
According to Freud, the child must give up his sexual attraction for his mother in order to resolve this attraction and move to the next stage of psychosexual development. Failure to do so would lead the child to become fixated in this stage.
Electra Complex
a girl learns that her father has a penis and she does not, develops “penis envy,” a sexual attachment to her father, and a sense of romantic love for him.
She also begins to see her mother as an obstacle or rival for the father, and may even blame her mother for her lack of penis. Over time, the girl starts to internalize these feelings toward her mother and they start to form a healthier relationship.
Defense Mechanism
A defense mechanism is a way for the mind to protect us from being consciously aware of thoughts or feelings that are too difficult to tolerate. Since the thought or feeling is too difficult to tolerate the defense mechanism only allows the unconscious thought or feeling to be expressed indirectly in some type of disguised form. Doing this allows us to reduce anxiety that is caused by the unconscious thought or feeling.
Repression
Involves unconscious denial of the existence of something that causes anxiety
Denial
Involves denying the existence of an external threat or traumatic event
Reaction Formation
Involves expressing an id impulse that is the opposite of the one truly driving the person
Projection
Involves attributing a disturbing impulse to someone else
Regression
Involves retreating to an earlier, less frustrating period of life and displaying the childish and dependent behaviors characteristic of that more secure time
Rationalization
Involves reinterpreting behavior to make it more acceptable and less threatening
Displacement
Involves shifting id impulses from a threatening or unavailable object to a substitute object that is available
Sublimation
Involves altering or displacing id impulses by diverting instinctual energy into socially acceptable behaviors
Psychoanalytic/Psychodynamic Model Pros
promoted uniqueness of the individual and respect/humane view of those with mental illnesses; pioneered talk therapy as a viable treatment approach
Psychoanalytic/Psychodynamic Model (Cons)
unverifiable concepts, depends on (long ago) case studies for research support
Psychoanalytic/psychodynamic model (main theme)
psychopathology due to unconscious conflicts, typically these are unresolved childhood conflicts/traumas/fixations; insight=cure.
free association
This process is a Freudian (psychoanalytic) method of exploring the unconscious in which the person relaxes and says whatever comes to mind, no matter how trivial or embarrassing.
dream analysis
Dream Analysis is an approach to psychological understanding that focuses on finding emotional clues and symbols in a person’s dreams.
transference
is a phenomenon where patients undergoing clinical therapy begin to transfer their feelings of a particular person in their lives to the therapist.
Psychoanalytic/psychodynamic model (Treatment methods)
the therapist and patient review childhood experiences, uncover unconscious processes via talk therapy; subsequent insight is assumed to lead to symptom relief. Focus is on the past, especially childhood and relationship with caregiver like mother.
Cognitive-Behavioral Model
focuses on the behaviors people display and the thoughts they have. The model is also interested in the interplay between behaviors and thoughts — how behavior affects thinking and how thinking affects behavior.
Cognitive-Behavioral Model (pros)
all its key concepts can be empirically evaluated; emphasizes external factors and does not judge the individual; challenges clinicians to demonstrate treatment effectiveness; generates much research data on treatment outcome
Cognitive-Behavioral Model (cons)
minimizes or ignores biological factors; overemphasizes the role of environmental factors; hard to account for behaviors where exposure is unclear or where reinforcers appear to be outweighed by punishers.
Cognitive-Behavioral Model (Main theme)
psychopathology is simply learned behavior, acquired similar to all types of (non-psychopathologic) behaviors; learning (behavioral) paradigm first viewed psychopathology as caused by environmental factors alone. Later with the onset of cognitive theories, behavioral theory expanded to include cognitions as another link to environmentally- induced disorders (e.g., the way a person comprehends or perceives the situation can lead to emitting maladaptive behaviors).
classical conditioning
A process of learning by temporal association in which two events that repeatedly occur close together in time become fused in a person’s mind and produce the same response.
modeling
A process of learning in which an individual acquires responses by observing and imitating others.
operant conditioning
A process of learning in which individuals come to behave in certain ways as a result of experiencing consequences of one kind or another whenever they perform the behavior.
Thorndike’s Law of Effect
operant conditioning: behavior that is followed by reinforcement is likely to be repeated (strengthened) in the future; behavior that is followed by punishment is likely to be discouraged (weakened) and not repeated in the future)
Cognitive-Behavioral Mode (Treatment methods)
cognitive restructuring, mindfulness, exposure therapy, flooding, systematic desensitization, response prevention, modeling, behavior modification, etc. Treatment is very active, collaborative, and solution-oriented; identify irrational and negative thoughts, cognitive distortions and maladaptive schemas, behavior consequences of reinforcement (positive and negative) and punishment and change thoughts and behaviors; focus is on the here-and-now (present).
Humanistic-existential model (pros)
very respectful of the individual; supportive; warm; genuine.
Humanistic-existential model (cons)
similar to psychoanalytic model - many concepts difficult to verify; depends on client self-report.
Humanistic-existential model (main theme)
psychopathology arises from denial of the authentic self due to attempts to please others and to be accepted by others; fundamental anxiety or motivator here is the fear of death or nonbeing. Attempts to achieve immortality through being special (e.g., being loved, accepted, as one with others) lead an individual to stray from true development of the self. Inauthentic modes of being thus lead to psychopathology, according to this model. Emphasizes phenomenology and free will, along with personal responsibility-taking.
Humanistic-existential model (treatment)
non-directedness: active listening, reflection, empty chair, etc.
Key therapist characteristics here include unconditional positive regard, acceptance, genuineness, respect, and empathic understanding.
Underlying premise: client is the expert and holds the answers to his/her/their own dilemmas. Therapist’s job is to create a safe holding environment so that the client is able to get in touch with true feelings, wants, needs, values, etc., and that these in turn will direct the client in making the “right” life decisions health and happiness, or self-actualization. Focus is on both the past and present.
Diathesis-stress model
the first interactive or multifactorial model that suggests the existence of an inherent predisposition or individual vulnerability to mental illness(es) that is triggered by environmental stress; the model insists that an individual must have both to lead to the onset of symptoms.
Originally created to explain the onset of schizophrenia.
