Unit 8: Clinical Flashcards
Psychological disorder
A syndrome marked by a clinically significant disturbance in an individual’s cognition, emotion regulation, or behavior
- disturbances are dysfunctional or maladaptive and interfere with day to day life
Medical model
the concept that diseases, in this case psychological disorders, have physical causes that can be diagnosed, treated and, in most cases, cured, often through treatment in a hospital
Epigenetics (biopsychosocial approach)
The study of environmental influences on gene expression that occur without a DNA change –> why do genes present themselves only in specific environments
What is the DSM-5?
Diagnostic and statistical Manual of mental Disorders
- a widely used system/manual for classifying psychological didorders
Pros and cons of a labeling system like the DSM-5
PROS: makes it easy to track worldwide trends, provides a baseline for clinitians, improve communication
CONS: controversial, different diagnoses by different clinicians, too broad (pathologizes the normal), stigmatising
ADHD (attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder)
a psychological disorder marked by extreme inattention and/or hyperactivity and impulsivity
Correlation between poverty and mental disorder
The incidence of serious psychological disorders is 2.5x higher among those below the poverty line
- the stresses and demoralization of poverty can also precipitate disorders, especially depression in women and substance abuse in men
Anxiety disorders
psychological disorders characterized by distressing, persistent anxiety or maladaptive behaviors that reduce anxiety
**social anxiety: intense fear and avoidance of social situations
**generalized anxiety disorder: a person is continually tense, apprehensive, and in a state of autonomic nervous system arousal
Phobias
an anxiety disorder marked by persistent, irrational fear and avoidance of a specific object, activity, or situation
Agoraphobia
fear or avoidance of situations, such as crowds or wide open places, where one has felt loss of control and panic
OCD
- obsessive-compulsive disorder
a disorder characterized by unwanted repetitive thoughts (obsessions), actions (compulsions), or both
- in order to not be considered a routine, these behaviors have to persistently interfere with every day living and cause distress (effective functioning becomes impossible over time)
PTSD
- post-traumatic stress disorder
a disorder characterized by haunted memories, nightmares, hypervigilance, social withdrawal, jumpy anxiety, numbness of feeling or insomnia that lingers for four weeks or more after a traumatic event
Anxiety and classical conditioning
Through classical conditioning, our fear responses can become linked with formally neutral objects/events: explains why some anxious/traumatized people learn to associate their anxiety with certain cues (triggers)
^ sometimes develops stimulus generalization (when a person experiences a fearful event and later develops a fear of similar events
Depressive disorders
Persistent depressive disorder: a disordered state in which a person experiences mild and long periods of depressive symptoms like hopelessness or lethargy
Major depressive disorder: a disorder in which a person experiences, in the absence of drugs or another medical condition, two or more weeks with five or more symptoms ar least one of which must be with (1) depressed mood or (2) loss of interest/pleasure
- serotonin is scarce/inactive during depression
Bipolar disorder
A disorder in which a person alternates between the hopelessness and lethargy of depression and the overexcited state of mania
- Mania: a hyperactive, wildly optimistic state in which dangerously poor judgement is common
Brain activity is diminished during depressive states and more active during periods of mania
Norepinephrine (increases arousal, boosts mood) is scarce during depression and overabundany during mania
How do drugs such as Prozac and Zoloft work?
drugs that relive depression tend to increase norepinephrine or serotonin supplies by blocking their reuptake or blocking their chemical breakdown
Suicide
- risk of suicide increases during the rebound from depression (when energy and initiative are lacking) to when they are functional enough to follow through
- around 3/10 people who have suicidal thoughts will act on them
Schizophrenia
a disorder characterized by delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech, and/or diminished inappropriate emotional expression
Chronic: (process schizophrenia) symptoms usually appear by late adolescence or early adulthood. as people age, psychotic episodes last longer and recovery periods shorten
Acute: (reactive schizophrenia) can begin at any age; frequently occurs in response to a traumatic event
- more likely to recover/respond to drug therapy
Hallucination vs. delusion
Hallucination: false sensory experiences
** seeing something in the absence of visual stimulus
Delusion: false beliefs
** feeling persecuted or grandiose
Flat affect
a state of no apparent feeling
Dopamine and schizophrenia
Hyper-responsive dopamine systems may intensify brain signals in schizophrenia, creating positive symptoms - drugs that block dopamine receptors often lessen these symptoms
Positive vs. negative schizophrenic symptoms
- positive = presence of inappropriate behaviors (hallucinations, deluded speech)
- negative = lack of appropriate behaviors (absence of emotion/expression)
Somatic symptom disorder
a psychological disorder in which symptoms take a somatic (bodily) form without any physical cause
** conversion disorder: when a person experiences very specific, physical symptoms that are not compatible with recognized medical or neurological conditions
** illness-anxiety disorder (hypochondriacs): when a person interprets normal physical sensations as symptoms of a disease
Dissociative disorders
controversial, rare disorders in which conscious awareness becomes separated (disassociated) from previous memories, thoughts, and feelings
**Dissociative identity disorder (DID): when a person exhibits two or more distinct, alternating personalities
Personality disorders
inflexible and enduring behavior patterns that impair social functioning
**a personality disorder in which a person exhibits a lock of conscience for wrongdoing, even towards friends and family members; may be aggressive and ruthless or a clever con artist
– disproportionately affects men
Eating disorders
Anorexia nervosa
- when a person maintains a starvation diet despite being significantly underweight; sometimes accompanied by excessive exercise
Bulimia nervosa
- when a person’s binge-eating is followed by inappropriate weight-loss behavior, such as vomiting, laxative use, fasting or excessive exercise
Binge-eating disorder
- significant binge-eating episodes followed by distress, disgust, or guilt, but without the compensatory behavior that marks bulimia nervosa
