Abnormal Psychology

1. Abnormal Psychology

2. What is abnormal?

3. Abnormal Psychology • The area of psychological investigation concerned with understanding the nature of individual pathologies of mind, mood, & behavior

4. Abnormal Psychology • Determining if someone has a disorder is typically based on an evaluation of the individual’s behavioral functioning by people with some special/professional authority

5. Abnormal Psychology • What helps psychologists to determine a disorder is a classification scheme called • DSM-IV-TR: classifies, defines, & describes 200 mental disorders  emphasizes the description of patterns/symptoms (*changed and updated by committees of psychologists often)

6. Abnormal Psychology • Criteria Used to label behavior as “abnormal”: 1. Distress or Disability- experiences personal distress or disabled functioning  produces risk of psychological deterioration or loss of freedom (ie. agoraphobia)

7. Abnormal Psychology 2. Maladaptiveness- acts in ways that hinder goals, doesn’t contribute to personal well-being, interferes with goals of others (ie. drinking heavily  can’t hold a job

8. Abnormal Psychology 3. Irrationality- acts/talks in ways that are irrational or incomprehensible to others (ie. responding to voices that others cannot hear)

9. Abnormal Psychology 4. Unpredictability- behaves unpredictably or erratically (ie. smashing a window for no reason)

10. Abnormal Psychology 5. Unconventionality and Statistical Rarity- individual behaves in ways that are statistically rare; does not necessarily lead to abnormality (ie. low intelligence- rare & undesirable; a genius- rare, but desirable)

11. Abnormal Psychology 6. Observer discomfort- a person creates discomfort in others by making them feel threatened, or distressed in some way (ie. woman walking in the middle of the street talking to herself)

12. Abnormal Psychology 7. Violation of Moral & Ideal Standards- individual violates expectations of how one ought to behave with respect to societal norms

13. Abnormal Psychology • The more extreme & prevalent the indicators are, the more confident we can be that they point to an abnormal condition • None of these are a necessary condition shared by all cases of abnormality

14. Abnormal Psychology • No single criterion by itself is a sufficient condition that distinguishes all cases of abnormal behavior from normal variations in behavior • The distinction between normal & abnormal is a matter of degree to which a person’s actions resemble a set of agreed-upon criteria of abnormality

15. Problem of Objectivity • To declare/decide someone has a psychiatric disorder is a judgment about behavior • GOAL: to make these judgments objectively- w/o bias • Some disorder judgments are more easily made w/o bias (depression & schizophrenia)

16. Problem of Objectivity • Once an individual has obtained an “abnormal label” people are inclined to interpret later behavior to confirm that judgment

17. Problem of Objectivity • Ex- Rosenhan’s experiment- several people faked hallucinations to get placed into a psych hospital  once there they acted in a sane manner  kept there for 3 weeks, & not one was identified as sane  finally released with help from spouses/colleagues

18. History of Mentally Ill 1. For most of history, humans feared the mentally ill & associated them with evil; they were in some cases imprisoned or killed

19. History of Mentally Ill 2. 1700s- idea emerges  those suffering from psychological problems are “sick” and suffering from illness rather than being possessed or immoral. - Reforms evolved in the way the ill were cared for/classified/diagnosed (Pinel & Kraepelin)

20. History of Psychopathology 2. Psychological- various approaches perceive personal experiences, trauma, conflicts, and environmental factors, as the root of disorders - 3 Psychological Models of Abnormality:

21. History of Mentally Ill 3. Late 1700s-Early 1800s- emergence of psychological reasons for mental illness, b/c people began to use techniques like hypnosis that seemed to cure people of “hysteria”

22. History of Mentally Ill 4. Modern versions combine aspects of both medical and psychological models of mental illness

23. Etiology of Psychopathology • Biological- psychological disturbances are directly attributable to biological factors (structural abnormalities in the brain, bio-chemical process, and genetic influences) - Ex.- neurotransmitters, brain injury, infection

24. Etiology of Psychopathology A. Psychodynamic- cause of psychopathology is located inside the person; symptoms have their roots in the unconscious conflict & thoughts - if the unconscious is conflicted & tension filled  person will be plagued by anxiety - conflict comes from struggle between Id, Ego, Superego

25. Etiology of Psychopathology B. Behavioral- abnormal behaviors acquired thru learning & reinforcement - focus on current behavior & conditions or reinforcements that sustain the behavior; NOT internal psychological phenomena or early childhood - symptoms arise b/c person learned ineffective ways of behaving

26. Etiology of Psychopathology C. Cognitive- agree w/ behaviorists, but w/ a twist; what matters is the way people perceive/think about themselves & about their relations w/ people & the environment - suggests psych. problems are result of distortions in perceptions of reality of a situation, faulty reasoning, or poor problem solving

27. Etiology of Psychopathology D. Sociocultural- emphasizes role culture plays - particular cultural circumstances in which people live, may define an environment that helps bring about distinctive types or subtypes of psychopathology

28. Non-Psychotic & Psychotic Disorders

29. Anxiety Disorders

30. Anxiety Disorders • Causes: • Biological- phobias are evolutionary (shared across cultures); ability of certain drugs to relieve anxiety shows a possible biological cause; genetic basis- (twin study) for predisposition of 4 to 5 disorders

31. Anxiety Disorders 2. Psychodynamic- symptoms of anxiety come from unconscious conflicts/fear; symptoms are trying to protect the individual from pain - panic attacks  result of unconscious conflicts bursting into consciousness - Panic Attacks

32. Anxiety Disorders 3. Behavioral- focus on the way symptoms are reinforced/conditioned - phobias- classically conditioned fears  previously neutral stimuli become a frightening experience - OCD compulsive behaviors tend to reduce anxious thoughts  reinforcing the compulsive behavior

33. Anxiety Disorders 4. Cognition- person may overestimate nature/reality of threat or underestimate ability to cope w/ threat - people w/ anxiety may interpret their own distress as a sign of impending disaster  vicious cycle

34. Mood Disorders

35. SWBAT • Examine a video of psych patients at Bellevue Hospital • Analyze and discuss the patients according to their symptoms

36. Video • After viewing the video of patients at Bellevue Hospital, write a ½ page reaction, which will be discussed at the beginning of tomorrow’s class

37. SWBAT • Discuss Bellevue video reactions • Identify multiple perspectives of the causes of mood disorders • Analyze the difference between depression and bipolar disorder

38. Mood Disorders • Major Depressive Disorder- feeling of sadness/despair; usually appears before age 40; loss of previous source of pleasure; lasts avg. of 5 mos • Bipolar Disorder- episodes of severe depression and manic episodes; onset age 20-29

39. Mood Disorders • Causes: • Biological- levels of serotonin & norepinephrine depression; levels  mania - evidence of genetic factors (twin studies) influencing mood - some evidence that depressed people have small hippocampus

40. Mood Disorders 2. Psychodynamic- - hostile feelings & unconscious conflicts originated in childhood - depression is anger turned inward toward the self; anger tied to intense & dependent childhood relationship where needs were not met

41. Mood Disorders 3. Behavioral- an effect of the amount of positive reinforcement & punishment  depression (not enough positive & too much punishment) - also a connection between lack of social skills & depression

42. Mood Disorders 4. Cognitive a) - negative view of self - negative view of ongoing experience - negative view of future can lead to paralysis of will; no motivation to pursue goals

43. Mood Disorders b) - explanatory style; depressed people can’t control future outcomes that are important to them - pessimistic view - learned helplessness  expectancy that nothing they can do matters Manic Depressive/Bipolar Disorder

44. Mood Disorders • Gender Differences in Depression: - women- 2x more affected, esp. in adolescence due to puberty - why? more thoughtful response style & tendency to focus obsessively on problems - men- actively distract themselves from feeling depressed by focusing on something else

45. Mood Disorders • Suicide: - most depressed people don’t commit suicide; 50-80% of suicides are attempted by depressed people - women attempt suicide 3x’s more than men  men are more successful b/c of methods used

46. Mood Disorders - since 1960, youth suicide ; white males are the highest - most youth suicides have given signs

47. Knowledge Check! • Answer the T/F and Application questions on your own • When finished, hand in your sheet, and I’ll tell you what the answers were  • Were your answers correct?

48. Personality & Dissociative Disorders

49. SWBAT • Explain the 5 types of personality disorders • Identify the causes of personality disorders • Analyze the Dissociateive Identity Disorder (DID) in “Inside Karen’s Crowded Mind”

50. Personality Disorders • Read, “Inside Karen’s Crowded Mind” and be prepared to discuss