psychopathology

• statistical infrequency - numerically unusual behaviour or characteristic
• example of statistical infrequency - idd - iq below 70 (bottom 2%) is part of the diagnosis
• evaluate statistical infrequency

  • real-world application
  • unusual characteristics can be positive
  • benefits versus problems
• real-world application (statistical infrequency) - useful in diagnosis (e.g idd) and assessment (e.g. bdi for depression)
• unusual characteristics can be positive (statistical infrequency) - some unusual characterisation would not be judged abnormal (e.g. bdi for depression)
• benefits versus problems (statistical infrequency) - some people with low iq function adequately and don't benefit from being labelled (social stigma)
• deviation from social norms - social judgements about what is acceptable
• norms are culture specific - what is normal in one culture may not be in another (e.g. homosexuality)
• example - asd - impulsive, aggressive, irresponsible behaviour is not socially acceptable in many cultures
• evaluate deviation from social norms

  • real-world application
  • cultural and situational relativism
  • human rights abuses
• real world application (deviation from social norms) - used to diagnose some disorders e.g antisocial and schizotypal personality disorder
• cultural and situational relativism (deviation from social norms) - differential standard, therefore hard to make social judgements (e.g hearing voices)
• human rights abuses (deviation from social norms) - social norm approach maintain control over minority groups, e.g. women (nymphomania) and slaves (draptomania), but useful e.g. for antisocial personality disorder
• failure to function adequately - inability to cope with demands of everyday life
• when is someone falling? - rosenhan and seligman listed signs e.g. non-conformity to social rules, personal distress, severe distress or danger to self or others
• example - idd - failing to function is part of the diagnosis of idd as well as low iq
• evaluate failure to function adequately

  • represent a threshold for help
  • discrimination and control
  • failure to function can be normal
• represents a threshold for help (failure to function adequately) - provides a way to identify when someone needs professional help
• discrimination and social control (failure to function adequately) - may lead people living non-standard lifestyles being judged as abnormal
• failure to function can be normal - most of us experience such failure e.g. bereavement, but still may require help
• deviation from mental health - jahoda considered normality rather than normality
• what does ideal mental health look like?

  includes lack of symptoms, rationality, self-actualisation, coping with stress, realistic world view
• evaluate deviation from mental health

  • a comprehensive definition
  • may be culture bound
  • extremely high standards
• a comprehensive definition (deviation from mental health) - includes most of the reasons anyone might seek help
• may be culture bound (deviation from mental health) - some ideas e.g. self-actualisation are specific to western cultures, and independence varies within western cultures (e.g. germany versus italy)
• extremely high standards (deviation from mental health) - few people ever meet them, but useful as a goal for mental health
• behavioural characteristics of phobias

  • panic - scream or run away
  • avoidance - conscious effort to avoid
  • endurance - may stay and bear it
• emotional characteristics of phobias

  • anxiety - unpleasant state of high arousal, disproportionate to threat
  • fear - short lasting, more intense
  • emotional response in unreasonable / disproportionate to threat
• cognitive characteristics of phobias

  • selective attention - can't look away
  • irrational beliefs - unfounded beliefs
  • cognitive distortions - unrealistic
• two-process model - two processes of conditioning (mowrer)
• acquisition by classical conditioning - ucs linked to ns, then both produce ucr (fear), now called the cr.

  e.g little albert played with rat (ns), heard loud noise (ucs) then rat (now cs) produces fear response (now cr)
• maintenance by operation conditioning - avoidance of phobic stimulus negatively reinforced by anxiety reduction, so the phobia is maintained
• evaluate the behavioural explanation of phobias

  • real world application
  • cognitive aspects of phobias
  • phobias and traumatic experiences
  • learning and evolution
• real world application (behavioural explanation of phobias) - phobias successfully treated by preventing avoidance, as suggested by the model
• cognitive aspects of phobias (behavioural explanation of phobias) - fails to account for cognitive aspects of phobias, e.g. irrational fears
• phobias and traumatic experiences (behavioural explanation of phobias) - 73% of people with a dental phobia had past trauma, in control group with no phobia only 21% has trauma (de jongh et al)

  counterpoint - not all cases of phobias follow bad experiences and vice versa
• learning and evolution (behavioural explanation of phobias) - two-process model explains individual phobias, but evolutionary approach explains general aspects of phobias
• anxiety hierarchy - a lost of situation ranked for how much anxiety they produce
• reciprocal inhibition - relaxation and anxiety can't happen at the same time

  relaxation includes imagery and/or breathing techniques
• exposure - exposed phobic stimulus whilst relaxed at each level of the anxiety hierachy