The 4 Ds Flashcards
What are the 4 D’s
Distress
Deviance
Danger
Dysfunctional
What is Deviance
Behaviours, emotions and thoughts that deviate from social or cultural norms.
What is Distress
Negative behaviours and feelings that cause distress to the individual or to others around them.
What is dysfunction
Behaviours and feelings that interfere with daily life.
What is dangerous
Behaviours and feelings that are potentially harmful to an individual and others around them.
Strengths of the 4 D’s
.The 4Ds make up mental health professionals, definitions of behaviour or feelings being abnormal
. Davis 2009 has shown the 4Ds can be used to diagnose patients and they predict the need for diagnoses accurately
. They are now standardised tests in the DSM to assess symptoms of many disorders and these should be used where possible instead of making personal judgements. The GAF scale can be used to measure depression or anxiety.
Cons of the 4 D’s
. No sharp line between normal and abnormal and there could be subjectivity.
. Davi’s 2009 suggested adding a fifth D duration. Having all of the days might not necessarily mean a person is mentally ill
. Cultural context matters.
. Temporal context matters.
. Gender matters.
Example of deviance
Streaking, pedophilloic thoughts
Example of dysfunction
Separation anxiety
Example of danger
Anorexia
Example of Distress
Anxiety, Anorexia
Application of the 4 Ds
The 4Ds can be very helpful in diagnosis however there could be an issue with social control as clinicians have a lot of power when it comes to being able to diagnose somebody and there could be serious implications for patients labelled as mentally ill people can be sectioned against their consent if they are deemed dangerous to themselves or others
