When a person can no longer cope with everyday tasks and life.
Simple examples, being unhygienic, not cooking, unable to hold down a job etc.
Martin and Seligman (1989)
No longer conforms to interpersonal rules- standing too close to someone's, maintaining eye contact.
Experience personal distress.
Become irrational or dangerous to self or others.
Why do sufferers of depression fit the definition of FFA?
They may struggle to get out of bed, find it difficult to communicate with friends and family etc.
Strength:
Represents a threshold for help:
Most people experience symptoms of mental disorders to some degree in their lives but are able to press on in face of these symptoms.
Tends to be at points where no longer FFA that people seek professional help.
Target treatment for those who need it.
Weakness:
Individual differences:
One person with OCD exhibits excessive rituals that may cause them to miss work if they don't complete them all a certain amount of times, but another person may do the same and be able to show up to work on time.
Suggests that despite having dame symptoms, each person will be diagnosed differently questioning validity of definition.
Weakness:
FFA may not be abnormal:
Someone who has just experienced a bereavement in life may struggle to get out of bed and motivate themselves due to grief.
Unfair to label someone as abnormal due to their reaction to a difficult circumstance.
Difficult to know when to apply this definition, limiting its usefulness.
