Unit XII - Abnormal Behavior Flashcards
What are anxiety disorders?
psychological disorders characterized by
distressing, persistent ANXIETY or MALADAPTIVE BEHAVIORS that reduce anxiety
What is social anxiety disorder?
INTENSE fear and avoidance of SOCIAL situations (formerly called
social phobia)
Characteristics of person with SAD
extremely anxious in social settings where others might judge them, such as parties, class presentations, or even eating in public. avoid going out at all
What is generalized anxiety disorder
an anxiety disorder in which
a person is CONTINUALLY tense,
apprehensive, and in a state of
AUTONOMIC nervous system arousal
Characteristics of person with GAD
EXCESSIVE and UNCONTROLLABLE worry that persists for 6 months or more. Worries continually Jittery, agitated, and sleep-deprived FREE-FLOATING ANXIETY
free-floating
not linked to a specific stressor or threat
What is panic disorder?
anxiety disorder marked by UNPREDICTABLE, minutes-long episodes of INTENSE dread in which a person may experience TERROR and accompanying chest pain, choking, or other frightening sensations;
For the 3% of people with panic disorder, panic attacks are
RECURRENT
not forgotten
What does a panic attack feel like?
thumping heartbeat & shortness of breath
How can panic attacks lead to agoraphobia?
people may avoid SITUATIONS where panic might strike
INTENSE fear-> may develop agoraphobia
Agoraphobia
fear or avoidance of public situations from which escape might be difficult.
Potential locations of agoraphobia
outside the home, in a crowd, or in an elevator.
What is a phobia?
an anxiety disorder
marked by a PERSISTENT, IRRATIONAL fear and AVOIDANCE of a SPECIFIC
object, activity, or situation
What are specific phobias?
may focus on
animals, insects, heights, blood, or close spaces.
What is obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)?
a disorder characterized
by UNWANTED REPETITIVE
thoughts (obsessions), ACTIONS (compulsions), or both
Compulsive behaviors are often ——— to those thoughts.
responses
What are some common obsessions among those with OCD?
Concern with dirt, germs, toxins
Something terrible happening
Symmetry, order, exactness
Obsession
Repetitive thoughts
Compulsions
Repetitive behavior
What are some common compulsions among those with OCD?
Excessive hand washing, toothbrushing, grooming
Repeating rituals
Checking doors, locks, appliances, car brakes, HW
Rituals and fussy behaviors cross the fine line between normality and disorder when they ———– interfere with everyday living and cause distress.
Persistently
Normal behavior
Checking that you locked the door is normal.
Washing your hands thoroughly is normal.
Organizing your markers and pens in rainbow order is normal.
sign of disorder
Checking 10 times that you locked the door is not.
Washing your hands so often that your skin becomes raw is not.
Not being able to use a pen unless it is in rainbow order is not.
Music star Justin Timberlake
discussed his obsessive-compulsive
disorder.
He says that support from family and a rich sense of humor have
helped him cope with the challenges.
What other disorders are classified as OCD-related disorders in the DSM-5?
Hoarding disorder
Body dysmorphic disorder
Trichotillomania
Excoriation disorder
What is posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)?
a disorder characterized by HAUNTING memories,
nightmares, HYPERVIGILANCE, social withdrawal, jumpy ANXIETY, NUMBNESS of feeling, and/or
insomnia that lingers for FOUR weeks or more after a TRAUMATIC experience
PTSD common symptoms
recurring haunting memories and nightmares, laser-focused attention to possible threats, social withdrawal, jumpy anxiety, and
trouble sleeping.
What treatment exists for PTSD?
PARTICIPATE in an INTENSIVE recovery program using deep BREATHING, massage, and group and individual DISCUSSION techniques
Why do some develop PTSD after a traumatic event?
amount of trauma-related EMOTIONAL DISTRESS
HIGHER the DISTRESS, the GREATER the risk for post traumatic symptoms
What additional factors impact the development of PTSD in some people?
More SENSITIVE emotion-processing limbic system -> may result in another disorder
Genetic INFLUENCE
Gender -> females more likely
How does conditioning impact anxiety disorders, OCD, and PTSD?
Anxious or traumatized people learn to associate their anxiety with CERTAIN CUES
Disorders MORE LIKELY to develop when BAD EVENTS happen UNPREDICTABLY/ UNCONTROLLABLY
What is stimulus generalization?
tendency, once a response has been CONDITIONED, for stimuli similar to the conditioned stimulus to ELICIT similar responses.
How does stimulus generalization explain anxiety, OCD and PTSD?
a person experiences a fearful event and later develops a fear of similar events.
Child bitten by dog-> scared of all dogs
What is reinforcement?
in operant
conditioning, reinforcement is any EVENT that
STRENGTHENS the behavior it follows.
How does reinforcement help explain anxiety, OCD and PTSD?
helps maintain learned fears and anxieties
Anything that enables us to avoid/ escape a feared situation -> REINFORCE MALADAPTIVE BEHAVIORS
How does cognition impact anxiety?
Our past experiences shape our expectations and influence our interpretations and reactions.
Creaky sound can be interpreted as both….
wind
knife-welding attacker
What research has been conducted on cognition and anxiety?
Susan Mineka -> 6 monkeys raised in wild -> fear of snakes
Lab monkeys -> no fear
When observing fear of snakes in other monkeys, younger monkeys developed a persistent fear of snakes
How do genes impact anxiety, OCD and PTSD?
One research team identified 17 gene variations associated with typical anxiety disorder symptoms
May be genes related to OCD
Identical twins develop similar phobias
How do genes regulate neurotransmitters that impact anxiety, OCD and PTSD?
Some genes influence disorders by regulating brain levels of NEUROTRANSMITTERS.
Examples of regulated neurotransmitter by genes
Serotonin -> sleep, mood, threats
Glutamate -> heightens activity in brain’s alarm centers
How do our experiences change our brain?
By PAVING NEW PATHWAYS
Traumatic fear-learning experiences can leave tracks in the brain, creating FEAR CIRCUITS within the AMYGDALA
How are brain structures involved?
Brain scans of people with OCD reveal ELEVATED activity in the ANTERIOR CINGULATE CORTEX during compulsive behaviors
What role does the anterior cingulate cortex play in OCD?
seems especially likely to be hyperactive
anterior cingulate cortex
brain region that monitors our ACTIONS and checks for ERRORS
How does biology drive fears?
helps us understand why most people have more fear of HEIGHTS than does Alex Honnold in 2017 becoming the first person to free solo climb (no safety ropes) Yosemite National Park’s El Capitan granite wall.
How does natural selection underlie our fears?
biologically PREPARED to fear threats faced by our ancestors.
Those fearless about these OCCASIONAL threats were LESS LIKELY to survive and leave descendants.
Common fears due to natural selection
spiders, snakes, and other animals; enclosed spaces and heights; storms and darkness.
What is a psychological disorder?
a SYNDROME marked by a CLINICALLY significant DISTURBANCE in an INDIVIDUAL’S COGNITION, EMOTION
REGULATION, OR BEHAVIOR
dysfunctional or maladaptive
SIGNIFICANTLY DISTURBED thoughts, emotions, or behaviors INTERFERE with NORMAL day-to-day life
How can cleaning become a disorder?
INTERFERING with work/ leisure
Can the definition of “significant disturbance” change over time? Such as in homosexuality?
American Psychiatric Association DECLASSIFIED homosexuality as disorder because MORE members view it as no LONGER a PSYCHOLOGICAL problem
What was trephining?
In the Stone Age, DRILLING skull HOLES may have been an
attempt to RELEASE EVIL SPIRITS and CURE those with mental disorders
How was mental illness treated during the Middle Ages?
Mental illness-> introduced by DEVIL
Need HARSH CURE -> to drive out demon
CAGING, GENITAL MUTILATION, BEATINGS, REMOVAL of teeth, intestines, TRANSFUSIONS of animal blood
What were some efforts at reform at the turn of the nineteenth century?
Opposed BRUTAL TREATMENTS -> sponsored PATIENT DANCES -> LUNATIC BALLS
What is the medical model?
the CONCEPT that PSYCHOLOGICAL
DISORDERS have PHYSICAL causes that can be DIAGNOSED, TREATED, and, in most cases, CURED, often through treatment in a hospital
How did the medical model cause change in mental health in the 1800s?
syphilis infects the brain and distorts the mind.
Researchers began to look for PHYSICAL causes of other mental disorders and for treatments that would cure them.
Hospitals REPLACED asylums, and the medical model of mental disorders was BORN.
What is the biopsychosocial approach to understanding mental illness?
As INDIVIDUALS, we differ in the amount of STRESS we experience and in the ways we COPE with stressors.
Biological influences on mental health
EVOLUTION
individual GENES
BRAIN structure and chemistry
Psychological influences on mental health
STRESS
TRAUMA
learned HELPLESSNESS
mood related perceptions & memories
Social-cultural influences on mental health
Rules
Expectation
Definitions of normality/ disorder
What is the vulnerability–stress (or diathesis-stress) model?
This model suggests that genetic PREDISPOSITIONS combine with environmental STRESSORS to increase or decrease the likelihood of developing a psychological DISORDER.
What is epigenetics?
the study of ENVIRONMENTAL influences on gene
expression that occur WITHOUT a DNA change
How does epigenetics support vulnerability-stress model?
In one environment, a gene will be expressed, but in another, it may lie dormant.
For some, that will be the difference between developing
a disorder or not developing it.
Why do clinicians classify psychological disorders?
CLASSIFICATION ORDERS AND DESCRIBES SYMPTOMS
What, beyond describing symptoms, is the purpose of diagnosing disorders?
CLASSIFICATION also aims to PREDICT a disorder’s future course, SUGGEST appropriate treatment, and PROMPT research into its
causes.
What is the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition?
widely used system for classifying psychological disorders.
USED to guide DIAGNOSIS & TREATMENT
What are some changes to diagnostic labels in the 5th edition of the DSM?
conditions formerly called “autism” and “Asperger’s syndrome” were combined under the label autism spectrum disorder
“Mental retardation” became intellectual disability.
New disorders, such as hoarding
disorder and binge-eating disorder, were added.
Are some diagnoses controversial?
Yes. For instance, disruptive mood dysregulation disorder is a new DSM-5 diagnosis for children “who exhibit persistent irritability and frequent episodes of behavior outbursts three or more times a week for more than a year.”
What is one criticism of the DSM-5?
Critics have long faulted the DSM for casting TOO WIDE a net and bringing “almost any kind of behavior within the compass of psychiatry”
What is another criticism of the DSM-5?
Another concern critics of the DSM-5 raise is the OVER-LABELING of what might be common everyday feelings and practical responses to traumatic events
What is a benefit of labeling disorders with the DSM-5?
CHALLENGING symptoms, diagnosis and treatment
can be a relief and bring improved functioning.
How can diagnostic labels be misleading?
Once labeling a person, we view that person differently.
Labels can change reality by putting us on alert for evidence that confirms our view.
What research has been conducted on mislabeling of behaviors?
David Rosenhan and seven of his graduate students went to hospital admissions offices, complaining (falsely) of “hearing voices” saying
empty, hollow, and thud.
Apart from this complaint and giving false names and occupations, they answered questions truthfully.
All eight healthy people
were misdiagnosed with disorders.
How did being labeled as “ill” impact how others viewed the grad students?
Until being released an average of 19 days later, those eight “patients” showed no other symptoms.
Yet after analyzing their (quite normal) life histories, clinicians were able to “discover” the causes of their disorders, such as having mixed emotions about a parent.
Even routine note-taking behavior was
misinterpreted as a symptom.
How do labels have power in everyday life?
Getting a job or finding a place to rent can be a challenge for people recently released from a psychiatric hospital.
speaking out by public figure
Public figures have helped foster understanding by speaking openly about their own struggles with disorders such as depression and substance abuse.
How has broadening the diagnostic criteria of ADHD created a controversy?
criteria are now too broad and may turn normal, childish rambunctiousness into a disorder.
How frequently is Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHS) diagnosed?
More COMMON in boys
11% of 4 to 17 years old
2.5% in adults
What are the symptoms of ADHD?
inattention and distractibility
hyperactivity
impulsivity
What are the arguments regarding the diagnosing of ADHD?
Children not meant to sit inside for hours in chairs
Youngest children tend to be more fidgety/ diagnosed
What do the supporters of ADHD diagnoses note?
More diagnoses reflect increased awareness.
ADHD is a real neurobiological disorder whose existence should no longer be debated.”
ADHD is associated with abnormal brain structure, abnormal brain activity patterns, and future risky or antisocial behavior.
How can ADHD be treated?
stimulant medication, behavior therapy and aerobic exercise.
Do disorders increase the risk of violence?
No. Most violent criminals are not mentally ill, and most mentally ill people are not violent.
Insanity is not a psychological or medical diagnosis but rather a
LEGAL one
defendants cannot
be held accountable for their actions at the time of the crime, typically due to mental disorder.
How many people have or have had a psychological disorder?
just under 1 in 5 adult Americans currently have a “mental, behavioral, or emotional disorder or have had one within the past year
What disorders are most prevalent in America?
Depressive/bipolar disorder Phobia Social anxiety disorder ADHD PTSD General anxiety disorder Schizophrenia OCD
How prevalent are disorders across the globe?
US 25% Ukraine 21% Columbia 21% New Zealand 20% France 19%
What are risk factors for mental illness?
POVERTY Academic failures Birth complications Child abuse/ neglect Medical illnesses Parental mental health
What are protective factors for mental illness?
Aerobic exercises Community Economic independence Effective parenting Social and work skills
Does poverty cause disorders or do disorders cause poverty?
BOTH
Yet the stresses and demoralization
of poverty can also precipitate disorders, especially depression in women and substance
abuse in men.
How prevalent is depression?
In one national survey, 31 percent of American college students answered Yes.
In a survey of American high school students, 29 percent “felt so sad or hopeless almost every day for 2 or more weeks in a row that they stopped doing some usual activities.”
What is major depressive disorder?
a state of hopelessness
and lethargy lasting several weeks or months
How is major depressive disorder diagnosed?
at least five signs of depression (including either depressed mood or loss of interest or pleasure) last two or more weeks
Symptoms of major depressive disorder
Depressed mood
Dramatically reduced interest
Significant challenges regulating appetite/ weight / sleep
Physical agitation
Feeling listless / worthless
Problems in thinking, concentrating, making decisions
Thinking repetitively of death
What is persistent depressive disorder?
Dysthymia
milder depressive symptoms that last a much longer period
of time.
How is persistent depressive disorder diagnosed?
experienced a mildly depressed mood more often than not for two years or more.
Symptoms of persistent depressive disorder
Difficulty with decision making and concentration Feeling hopeless Poor self-esteem Reduced energy levels Problems regulating sleep Problems regulating appetite
“Have you cried today?”
Americans have reported doing so more often in the winter.
For some people, depressive symptoms may have a seasonal pattern, returning each winter.
What is bipolar disorder?
a disorder in which a person alternates between the hopelessness and lethargy of
depression and the overexcited state of mania
What does it feel like to suffer from bipolar disorder?
In her art Life as a Two-Headed Beast: Bipolar, artist Abigail Southworth illustrated her personal experience
What does research show about the manic phase of bipolar disorder?
MANIC -> little sleep, less sexual inhibitions, abnormal persistent positive emotions, loud, thinks recklessly
What is the relationship between bipolar disorder and creativity?
In milder forms, mania’s energy and flood of ideas can fuel creativity.
What does research show about the implications of bipolar disorder?
more dysfunctional, claiming twice as many lost workdays early
Potent predictor of suicide
Americans are more likely to be diagnosed with bipolar disorder
What are biological explanations for major depressive disorder and bipolar disorder?
genetic predispositions
neurochemical imbalances
nutritional deficits
What is the genetic factor?
Runs in family
Common for both identical twins to have depression and bipolar
What is the heritability of certain disorders?
Bipolar 85% Schizophrenia 81% Anorexia nervosa 60% Major depressive disorder 37% Generalized anxiety disorder 28%
Which brain structures play a role in depression and bipolar disorder?
BIPOLAR -> decrease in myelinated axons and enlarged fluid-filled ventricles
DEPRESSION ->reward centers to become less active
How is the brain changing during a manic episode?
Increase glucose consumption during manic state
How do neurotransmitter systems influence depressive disorders and bipolar disorder?
Norepinephrine ->scarce during depression and overabundant during mania.
Serotonin is scarce or inactive during depression.
depression is related to the combination of two factors
significant life stress plus a variation of a serotonin-controlling gene.
How does physical exercise reduce depression?
reduces depression in part because it increases serotonin, which affects mood and arousal.
running for two hours increased brain activation in regions associated with euphoria.
How can diet reduce depression?
People who eat a heart-healthy
“Mediterranean diet” (heavy on vegetables, fish, and olive oil) have a comparatively low risk of developing heart disease, stroke, late-life cognitive decline, and depression
How can alcohol use and abuse lead to depression?
depression can increase alcohol use but mostly because alcohol misuse leads to depression.
How do life experiences play a role in depression and bipolar disorder?
Diet, drugs, stress, and other environmental influences lay down epigenetic marks
How does the social-cognitive perspective explain depression and bipolar disorder?
Many depressed people view life through the dark glasses of low self-esteem.
How do our thoughts lead to depression?
Expecting the worst, depressed people’s self-defeating beliefs and their negative
explanatory style feed their depression.
Overthinking may also impact depression.
What is rumination?
compulsive fretting;
overthinking our problems and their causes
Rumination in connection to depression
Relentless, self-focused rumination can distract us, increase negative emotion, and disrupt daily activities
How do social media comparisons factor into depression?
When people scroll through social media feeds and see ‘Maria having a blast with friends, Angelique
enjoying a family vacation, and Tyra looking super in a swimsuit’, the response, may be “my life is terrible.”
What is explanatory style?
who or what we blame for our failures
What explanatory style seems common in those diagnosed with depression?
often explain bad events in terms that are
STABLE
GLOBAL
INTERNAL
Stable
“It’s going to last forever”
Global
“It will affect everything I do”
Internal
“It’s all my fault”
What does research show about explanatory style of people diagnosed with depression?
respond to bad events in an especially self-focused, self-blaming
self-esteem that is
more plastic
What is learned helplessness?
the hopelessness and passive resignation an animal or person
acquires when unable to avoid
repeated aversive events
How might learned helplessness lead to depression?
Self-defeating beliefs may arise from learned
helplessness. Pessimistic, overgeneralized,
self-blaming attributions may create a depressing
sense of hopelessness
Why is depression more common among Western cultures?
Psychologist Martin Seligman pointed to the rise of individualism and the decline of commitment
to religion and family in Western, individualistic cultures
How is depression a vicious cycle?
both a cause and an effect of stressful experiences that disrupt our sense of
who we are and why we are worthy human beings.
Steps in depression cycle
Stressful experiences
Negative explanatory style
Depressed mood
Cognitive & behavioral changes
What does research show regarding suicide?
800000 annually
Anxiety & depression increase risk
Most commonly occur during rebound from depression
How do gender and age impact suicide?
Women are much more likely than men to attempt suicide.
But men are two to four times more likely
to actually end their lives.
In late adulthood, suicide rates increase
What are some factors that increase the risk of suicide?
Expose in family
Unsupported LGBT members
Publicized suicides/ TV programs
What factors may trigger suicidal urges?
disconnected from others and a burden
to them, or when they feel defeated and
trapped by an inescapable situation.
DEATH AS ALTERNATIVE
How can we help someone considering suicide?
listen
connect
protect
listen
empathize and offer friendship
connect
involve the school psychologist or counselor, refer the person to the Suicide Prevention Lifeline or Crisis Text Line
protect
seek help from a trusted adult—a parent, a teacher, a school nurse or school counselor—or call 911
What is nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI)?
cut or burn their skin, hit themselves, insert objects under their nails or skin, or self-administer tattoos.
Who is most at risk for nonsuicidal self-injury?
Self-injury rates peak higher for females than for males.
What does research show about people who engage in NSSI?
tend to experience bullying, harassment, and other life stress.
less able to tolerate and regulate emotional distress.
extremely self-critical and struggle to communicate, solve problems, and perform academically
What three issues have engaged developmental psychologists?
nature and nurture
continuity and stages
stability and change
nature and nurture
How does our genetic inheritance (our nature) interact with our experiences (our nurture) to influence our development?
continuity and stages
What parts of development are gradual and continuous and what parts change abruptly in separate stages?
stability and change
Which of our traits persist through life? How do we change as we age?
What is schizophrenia?
a disorder characterized by delusions,
hallucinations, disorganized speech, and/or diminished, inappropriate emotional expression
private inner world, preoccupied with the strange ideas and images that haunt them
positive symptoms
of schizophrenia
experience hallucinations, talk in disorganized
and deluded ways, and exhibit inappropriate laughter, tears, or rage
negative symptoms
of schizophrenia
absence of emotion in their voices, expressionless faces, or unmoving—mute and rigid—bodies.
positive symptoms
inappropriate behaviors
that are present
negative symptoms
appropriate behaviors
that are not present.
What is a hallucination?
false sensory experiences, or perceptions, such as seeing something in the absence of an external visual stimulus
What is a delusion
a false belief, often of persecution or grandeur, that may accompany psychotic disorders
Hallucination symptoms
they see, feel, taste, or smell
things that exist only in their minds.
Delusion symptoms
disorganized,
fragmented thinking, often distorted by false beliefs
paranoid tendencies, they may believe they are being threatened or pursued
How might selective attention be a factor in schizophrenia?
People with schizophrenia are easily distracted by tiny unrelated stimuli, such as the grooves on a brick or tones in a voice.
Maxine schizophrenia patient believing to be Mary Poppins
Communicating with Maxine was difficult because
her thoughts spilled out in no logical order.
What is disorganized speech?
positive symptom of schizophrenia
jumbled ideas may make no sense even within
sentences
How are emotions inappropriately expressed in schizophrenia?
expressed emotions of schizophrenia are often utterly inappropriate, split off from reality.
Inappropriate emotions
laughed after recalling her grandmother’s
death. On other occasions, she cried when others
laughed, or became angry for no apparent reason.
How are emotions diminished in schizophrenia?
emotionless flat affect state of no apparent feeling.
Struggles to feel sympathy and compassion
How might motor behavior be inappropriate and disruptive?
experience catatonia
Motionless
Senseless, compulsive actions
What does research show about the prevalence and development of schizophrenia?
Men tend to be struck earlier, more severely, and more often.
1 in 100 people will join an estimated 21 million others worldwide who
have schizophrenia
All nationalities
What is chronic schizophrenia?
symptoms usually appear by late adolescence or early adulthood
As people age, psychotic episodes last longer and recovery periods shorten.
chronic schizophrenia symptoms
Social withdrawal
Men -> develop earlier symptoms -> exhibit negative symptoms and chronic schizophrenia.
What is acute schizophrenia?
begin at any age; frequently occurs in response to a traumatic event
How might dopamine be associated with schizophrenia?
excess number of dopamine receptors, including a six-fold excess for the dopamine receptor D4
What else is known about dopamine and its relationship to schizophrenia?
A hyper-responsive dopamine system may intensify brain signals -> positive symptoms
Antagonists/ agonists in relation to schizophrenia
Drugs that block dopamine receptors (antagonists)
often lessen these symptoms. Drugs that increase dopamine levels (agonists), such as amphetamines
and cocaine, sometimes intensify them.
How has research been conducted on schizophrenia?
E. Fuller Torrey has collected the brains of hundreds of those who died as young
adults and suffered disorders such as
schizophrenia and bipolar disorder
How are the frontal lobes associated with schizophrenia?
abnormally low brain activity in the frontal lobes, areas that are involved in reasoning, planning, and solving problems.
What changes occur to the ventricles and cerebral tissue in patients with schizophrenia?
ENLARGED, fluid-filled VENTRICLES and a corresponding SHRINKAGE and thinning of CEREBRAL tissue.
What prenatal events are associated with schizophrenia?
mishaps during prenatal development or delivery causes brain abnormalities
Prenatal risk factors
low birth weight, maternal diabetes, older paternal age, and oxygen deprivation during delivery.
How are prenatal viral infections associated with schizophrenia?
Fetal-virus infections may increase the odds
Is there a genetic component to schizophrenia?
1 in 10 among those who have a sibling or parent with the
disorder.
What is the risk of developing schizophrenia?
lifetime risk varies
with one’s genetic relatedness to someone
having this disorder.
what about the prenatal environment?
Sharing placentas -> 60% schizophrenia of co-twin
Not sharing placentas -> 10% schizophrenia of co-twin
genes + viruses
shared
germs as well as shared genes produce identical twin similarities.
What brain changes are evident in the identical twin with schizophrenia
only the one afflicted with schizophrenia typically has enlarged, fluid-filled cranial cavities
difference between the twins implies some
non-genetic factor, such as a virus, is also at work
How do adoption studies inform the discussion?
Adoption studies help untangle genetic (nature) and environmental (nurture) influences.
adopted children have an elevated risk if a biological parent is diagnosed with schizophrenia.
What is the relationship between smoking and schizophrenia?
Smoking increases vulnerability to schizophrenia
and contributes to people with schizophrenia
having a 14.5-year shorter-than-average life expectancy
How do epigenetic factors impact the development of schizophrenia?
Environmental factors such as viral infections, nutritional deprivation, and maternal stress can “turn on” the genes that put some at higher risk for schizophrenia.
What are early warning signs of schizophrenia?
20% of participants who developed schizophrenia showed social withdrawal or other abnormal behavior before the onset of the disorder
What additional warning signs may be present?
mother whose schizophrenia was severe and long-lasting; birth complications; separation from parents; short attention span
and poor muscle coordination; disruptive or
withdrawn behavior; emotional unpredictability;
poor peer relations and solo play; and childhood physical, sexual, or emotional abuse.
What is a somatic symptom disorder?
psychological disorder in which the symptoms take a somatic (bodily) form without apparent
physical cause
somatic symptom disorder complaints
vomiting, dizziness, blurred vision, difficulty in swallowing. severe and prolonged pain.
What is a conversion disorder?
disorder in which a person experiences a very specific physical symptom that is not compatible with recognized medical or neurological conditions
conversion disorder example
lose sensation in a way that makes no neurological sense
unexplained paralysis, blindness, or an inability to swallow.
What is illness anxiety disorder?
a disorder in which a person interprets normal physical sensations as symptoms of a disease
illness anxiety disorder example
interpret normal sensations (a stomach cramp today, a headache tomorrow) as symptoms of a dreaded disease
What are dissociative disorders?
controversial, rare disorders in which conscious awareness becomes separated (dissociated)
from previous memories, thoughts, and feelings
dissociative disorders results
fugue state (not knowing who you are, perhaps accompanied by travel or relocation to a new place), a sudden loss of memory or change in identity, often in response to an overwhelmingly stressful situation.
What is Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID)?
a rare dissociative disorder in which a
person exhibits two or more distinct and
alternating personalities
DID characteristics
two or more distinct identities—each with its own voice and mannerisms—
seem to control a person’s behavior at different times
Original personalities has no awareness
Could DID be an extension ofour normal capacity for personality shifts?
Psychologist Nicholas Spanos asked college
students to pretend they were accused murderers being examined by a psychiatrist.
Under hypnosis, most spontaneously expressed a second personality.
dissociative identities are simply a more
extreme version of the varied “selves” we normally present
How has the increase in diagnosis caused doubt about the disorder?
Between 1930 and 1960, the number of North American DID diagnoses averaged 2 per decade.
By the 1980s number had exploded to more than 20,000.
Who was “Sybil?”
Shirley Mason was a psychiatric patient
diagnosed with dissociative identity disorder.
Her life formed the basis of the bestselling book Sybil and of two movies.
How did media depictions drive the diagnosis fad?
Some argue that the book and movies’ popularity
fueled the dramatic rise in diagnoses of DID. Skeptics wonder whether
Mason actually had the disorder.
Media portrayals
Joanne Woodward won an Academy Award for her 1958 portrayal of Chris Sizemore, a woman diagnosed with DID in
The Three Faces of Eve.
What research supports the diagnosis of dissociative identity disorder?
Abnormal brain anatomy and activity Heightened activity appears in brain areas associated with the control and inhibition of traumatic memories.
distinct body and brain states associated with differing personalities
How do the psychodynamic and learning perspectives view DID?
INTERPRETED DID symptoms as ways of COPING with anxiety
Psychodynamic ->
Second personality -> DISCHARGE of FORBIDDEN IMPULSES
Learning ->
BEHAVIORS reinforced by ANXIETY REDUCTION
What are personality disorders?
INFLEXIBLE and ENDURING behavior patterns
that IMPAIR social functioning
What are three clusters of personality disorders?
anxiety
eccentric or odd
dramatic or impulsive
anxiety
such as a fearful SENSITIVITY to rejection that predisposes the WITHDRAWN avoidant personality disorder.
eccentric or odd
such as the EMOTIONLESS DISENGAGEMENT of schizotypal personality disorder.
dramatic or impulsive
such as the ATTENTION-GETTING borderline personality disorder, the self-focused narcissistic personality disorder, the callous, and often dangerous, antisocial personality disorder
What is antisocial personality disorder?
a personality disorder in which a person (usually a man) exhibits a LACK of CONSCIENCE for WRONGDOING, even toward friends and family members; may be AGGRESSIVE and RUTHLESS or a clever con artist
Antisocial personality disorder
a personality disorder in which a person (usually a man) exhibits a LACK of CONSCIENCE for WRONGDOING, even toward friends and family members; may be
aggressive and ruthless or a clever con artist
antisocial personality disorder symptoms
can display symptoms by age 8
Their lack of conscience becomes plain before age 15, as they begin to lie, steal, fight, or display unrestrained sexual behavior.
Is there a correlation between emotional intelligence and antisocial personality disorder?
show lower emotional intelligence—
the ability to understand, manage,
and perceive emotions.
What is a characteristic of antisocial personality disorder?
extreme lack of conscience
Do all criminals have antisocial personality disorder?
criminality is NOT an ESSENTIAL component of antisocial behavior.
not impulsive and they care for family and friends.
Relation between arousal and criminal conviction
In both stressful and
non-stressful situations, those who would later be convicted of a crime as 18- to 26-year-olds showed relatively LOW arousal.
What are genetic factors in antisocial personality disorder?
appears as LOW AROUSAL in response to threats.
LITTLE autonomic nervous system arousal.
Is activity in the frontal lobes a factor?
reduced
activation in a murderer’s frontal
lobes
frontal lobes in connection to behavior
Regulation of IMPULSIVE/ AGGRESSIVE behavior
What is anorexia nervosa?
FEEDING and EATING disorder in which a person
(usually an adolescent female) MAINTAINS a STARVATION diet despite being significantly underweight; sometimes accompanied by EXCESSIVE exercise
How does anorexia nervosa commonly begin?
typically begins as a weight-loss diet
display a
binge-purge-depression cycle.
Twins Maria & Kay Campbell
As children they competed to see who could be thinner. Now, says Maria, her anorexia nervosa is “like a
ball and chain around my ankle that I can’t throw off.”
How does distorted perception impact feeding and eating disorders?
Women who view real and doctored images of UNNATURALLY THIN models and celebrities often feel ASHAMED, DEPRESSED, AND
DISSATISFIED with their own bodies
What is bulimia nervosa?
a FEEDING and EATING disorder in which a person’s BINGE EATING (usually of high-calorie foods) is followed by INAPPROPRIATE WEIGHT-LOSS promoting behavior,
such as vomiting, laxative use, fasting, or excessive exercise
bulimia nervosa symptoms
weight fluctuations within or above normal ranges, making the condition easier to hide
triggered by a weight-loss diet, broken by gorging on forbidden foods.
What is binge eating disorder?
a FEEDING and EATING disorder characterized by significant BINGE-EATING episodes, followed by DISTRESS, DISGUST, or GUILT, but without the compensatory behavior
Stats in America on eating disorder
at some point during their lifetime, 0.6% of Americans met the criteria for anorexia, 1% for bulimia, and 2.8% for binge-eating disorder.
What research has been conducted on the impact of modeling?
Researchers tested whether modeling of thinness impacted anorexia by giving some adolescent girls (but not others) a 15-month subscription to an American teen-fashion magazine.
What were the results of the study?
Compared with those who had not received the magazine,
vulnerable girls—defined as those who were already dissatisfied, idealizing thinness, and lacking social support—exhibited increased body dissatisfaction and eating disorder tendencies.
