Week 3 Introduction to Psychopathology Flashcards
Describe the multidimensional model of psychopathology.
Posits that abnormal psychology is derived from multiple sources - biological, behavioural, cognitive, developmental and interpersonal. Also highlights the importance of context.
What are the 5 major influences of abnormality?
Biological
Developmental
Behavioural
Cognitive/Emotional
Social/Interpersonal
Abnormal behaviour comes from multiple influences that affect one another i.e. biological influences may impact cognitive outcomes.
Biological factors that influence abnormality?
Genes
Neurotransmitters
Brain functioning/circuitry
Hormones
HPA Axis
Evidence indicates that biological factors contribute less than 50% to psychological disorders. For eg. if one twin has schizophrenia there is a less than 50% chance that the twin will have the same condition.
What are behavioural influences of abnormality?
Pavlovian conditioning
Operant conditioning
Prepared learning
Learned helplessness
Social learning
What are some examples of the cognitive/emotional influences of abnormality?
Fight/flight response
Emotional dysregulation
Implicit/unconscious memory
How does emotion effect behaviour?
Behavior is how we act.
Emotions can affect how we act. Patterns such as freezing, escaping, approaching, attacking
How does emotion effect cognition?
Cognition is about thinking and feeling.
Emotion can affect how we process information through appraisals and attributions - the way the world around is processed and understood.
What is the diathesis-stress model?
Individuals inherit tendencies to express certain traits or behaviours, which may then be activated under certain situations of stress.
A diathesis is a condition that makes someone susceptible to developing a certain disorder. When the right gene-environment situation presents, so too can the disorder.
How does emotion effect physiology?
Emotion is a brain function. Direct connection b/w brain and eyes can lead to bypass of higher cognitive processes.
What are some of the social and interpersonal influences of abnormality?
Cultural factors
Gender effects
Social support (frequency and quality are important)
What are some the developmental influences of abnormality?
Prenatal development
Infancy/toddlerhood
Childhood
Adolescence
Early/middle/late adulthood
What is equifinality?
The idea that there are several paths to a given outcome.
Paths vary by developmental stage.
What is the Triple Vulnerability Model?
A model that hypothesises that there are general biological and psychological influences in each disorder as well as a disorder-specific psychological vulnerability.
What are the three elements of clinical assessment?
Systematic evaluation and measurement - psychological, biological and social influences.
What are the two main elements of diagnosis?
Degree of fit between symptoms and diagnostic criteria.
Diagnosing is the act of placing the individual into a category of the classification system.
What are four purposes of diagnosis?
Understand the individual
Predict behaviour
Treatment planning
Evaluating outcomes
The usefulness of any assessment depends on…
reliability (consistency)
validity (measures what it’s supposed to)
standardisation (consistency across different measurements)
How are psychological disorders assessed with clinical interview?
- Assess multiple domains (presenting problem, current/past behaviour, detailed history, attitudes and emotions)
- Structured and semi-structured interviews (anxiety disorders schedule for DSM5 (ADIS-5)) or structured clinical interview for the DSM5 (SCID-5))
What are the four main factors considered in a behavioural assessment
ABC’s + context.
(antecedents, behaviour, consequences)
What tests exist for assessing psychopathology?
Mental Status Exam (appearance and behaviour, thought processes, mood and affect, intellectual functioning, sensorium)
Physical Exam (ruling out toxicities, medication side effects, allergic reactions, metabolic conditions)
Observation and identification of target behaviours, direct observation by individual/loved one, functional assessment/analysis.
What is classification?
An over-arching taxonomy of mental illness.
It helps to identify problems, guide intervention, identify new knowledge and communicate with others.
What is diagnosis?
The act of placing the individual into a category of the classification system.
Idiographic strategy
The things that are unique to an individual’s personality, cultural background or circumstances.
Nomothetic strategy
Used to identify specific psychological disorders > make diagnosis.
What are the two most widely used classification systems?
ICD-11 (WHO)
DSM5
What are the guiding principles for the DSM?
practical for clinical use
supported by empirical evidence
continuity with previous editions
harmony with ICD-11
aim to include cultural variations
reduce ‘not otherwise specified’
What four criteria determine the validity (accuracy) of a diagnosis?
clinical description
lab research
natural history
family studies
How has the DSM diagnostic system changed over time?
Dimensional considerations
Organised developmentally
Disorders defined in line with cultural, social and familial norms
Removal of multi-axial system
Replaced other specified disorder with unspecified disorder
Added new disorders
Limitations of the diagnostic system?
Disorders not always distinct
Disorders have blurred boundaries/comorbidity
Many disorders cluster together
Clinical signs and symptoms do not constitute a disorder - we might have the symptoms wrong.
