Unit 8: Clinical

Question 1

Psychological disorder

Answer 1

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

Question 2

Medical model

Answer 2

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

Question 3

Epigenetics (biopsychosocial approach)

Answer 3

The study of environmental influences on gene expression that occur without a DNA change –> why do genes present themselves only in specific environments

Question 4

What is the DSM-5?

Answer 4

Diagnostic and statistical Manual of mental Disorders

• a widely used system/manual for classifying psychological didorders

Question 5

Pros and cons of a labeling system like the DSM-5

Answer 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

Question 6

ADHD (attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder)

Answer 6

a psychological disorder marked by extreme inattention and/or hyperactivity and impulsivity

Question 7

Correlation between poverty and mental disorder

Answer 7

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

Question 8

Anxiety disorders

Answer 8

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

Question 9

Phobias

Answer 9

an anxiety disorder marked by persistent, irrational fear and avoidance of a specific object, activity, or situation

Question 10

Agoraphobia

Answer 10

fear or avoidance of situations, such as crowds or wide open places, where one has felt loss of control and panic

Question 11

OCD

Answer 11

• 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)

Question 12

PTSD

Answer 12

• 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

Question 13

Anxiety and classical conditioning

Answer 13

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

Question 14

Depressive disorders

Answer 14

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

Question 15

Bipolar disorder

Answer 15

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

Question 16

How do drugs such as Prozac and Zoloft work?

Answer 16

drugs that relive depression tend to increase norepinephrine or serotonin supplies by blocking their reuptake or blocking their chemical breakdown

Question 17

Suicide

Answer 17

• 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

Question 18

Schizophrenia

Answer 18

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

Question 19

Hallucination vs. delusion

Answer 19

Hallucination: false sensory experiences
** seeing something in the absence of visual stimulus

Delusion: false beliefs
** feeling persecuted or grandiose

Question 20

Flat affect

Answer 20

a state of no apparent feeling

Question 21

Dopamine and schizophrenia

Answer 21

Hyper-responsive dopamine systems may intensify brain signals in schizophrenia, creating positive symptoms - drugs that block dopamine receptors often lessen these symptoms

Question 22

Positive vs. negative schizophrenic symptoms

Answer 22

• positive = presence of inappropriate behaviors (hallucinations, deluded speech)
• negative = lack of appropriate behaviors (absence of emotion/expression)

Question 23

Somatic symptom disorder

Answer 23

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

Question 24

Dissociative disorders

Answer 24

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

Question 25

Personality disorders

Answer 25

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

Question 26

Eating disorders

Answer 26

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