PSYCHOPATHOLOGY

• Definitions of Abnormality:

  • Statistical infrequency: A disorder is abnormal if its frequency is more than two standard deviations away from the mean incidence rates represented on a normally-distributed bell curve
  • Failure to function adequately: A person is considered abnormal if their current mental state prevents them from leading a 'normal' life, alongside normal levels of motivation and obedience to social norms
  • Deviation from social norms: 'Abnormal' behavior is based on straying away from social norms specific to a certain culture
  • Deviation from ideal mental health: Focuses on what would comprise the ideal mental state of an individual
• Strengths and weaknesses of definitions of abnormality:

  • Statistical infrequency: Used in clinical diagnoses but assumes abnormal characteristics are always negative
  • Failure to function adequately: Considers the patient's perspective but may lead to labeling and discrimination
  • Deviation from social norms: Varies significantly between cultures and has led to discrimination
  • Deviation from ideal mental health: Unrealistic expectations and cultural relativism issues
• Characteristics of Phobias:

  • Behavioral characteristics: Panic, avoidance, endurance
  • Emotional characteristics: Anxiety, unawareness of irrationality
  • Cognitive characteristics: Selective attention, irrational beliefs, cognitive distortions
• Characteristics of Depression:

  • Behavioral characteristics: Changed activity levels, aggression, changed patterns of sleeping and eating
  • Emotional characteristics: Lowered self-esteem, constant poor mood, high levels of anger
  • Cognitive characteristics: Absolutist thinking, selective attention towards negative events, poor concentration
• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) Behavioral Characteristics:

  • Compulsions: repetitive and intrusive thoughts focused around the stimulus which reduce anxiety through acting upon obsessive thoughts
  • Avoidance behavior: negatively reinforced by avoiding the specific stimulus to avoid anxiety associated with compulsive behaviors and obsessive thoughts
• Emotional Characteristics of OCD:

  • Guilt and disgust
  • Depression due to constant compulsion to carry out repetitive behaviors interfering with day-to-day functioning and relationships
  • Anxiety associated with acknowledging irrational obsessive thoughts leading to compulsive behaviors
• Cognitive Characteristics of OCD:

  • Acknowledgment of excessive and irrational anxiety
  • Development of cognitive strategies to deal with obsessions
  • Obsessive thoughts: repetitive, focus on the stimulus, intrusive, cause excessive anxiety, and lead to compulsive behaviors
• The Behavioral Approach to Explaining Phobias:

  • Phobias acquired through classical conditioning and maintained through operant conditioning
  • Phobias can be explained by Mowrer's theory, which emphasizes exposure to the phobic stimulus to prevent negative reinforcement of avoidance behavior
• Alternative Explanations for Phobias:

  • Buck suggested safety as a greater motivator for avoidance behavior than simply avoiding anxiety
  • Seligman proposed that phobias are more likely to develop towards 'prepared' stimuli that posed a threat to our evolutionary ancestors
• The Behavioral Approach to Treating Phobias:

  • Systematic desensitization: reduces phobic anxiety through gradual exposure to the phobic stimulus, relying on counterconditioning and reciprocal inhibition
  • Flooding: reduces phobic anxiety in one session through immediate exposure to the phobic stimulus in a secure environment
• Cognitive Approach to Explaining Depression:

  • Becks proposed cognitive vulnerability towards developing depression through faulty information processing, negative self-schemas, and the cognitive triad of automatic negative thoughts
• Beck's cognitive theory explains depression by linking activating events (A) to irrational beliefs (B), resulting in emotional consequences (C)
• Ellis proposed the ABC model: activating event leads to irrational belief, resulting in emotional consequence like depression
• The ABC model may not explain all types of depression, especially those without an apparent activating event
• Both the ABC model and Beck's cognitive theory have limitations in explaining all aspects of depression, like hallucinations or anger
• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) aims to identify and challenge irrational thoughts, replacing them with more productive behaviors to treat depression
• CBT and antidepressants combined have shown to be the most effective treatment for depression, especially in severe cases
• The cognitive approach focuses on present life challenges as the cause of depression, which may not address past traumatic events for some patients
• The genetic explanation of OCD suggests a genetic vulnerability, with up to 230 genes involved in its development
• Twin studies support a genetic basis for OCD, with identical twins more likely to share OCD compared to non-identical twins
• The genetic explanation of OCD faces challenges due to the large number of candidate genes and the difficulty in targeting specific genes for treatment
• Environmental factors, like trauma, play a role in OCD development, which the genetic explanation may overlook
• Drug treatments for OCD, like SSRIs and Tricyclics, aim to increase neurotransmitter levels to manage symptoms
• Drug therapy for OCD can have serious side effects, impacting the patient's everyday life
• Drug treatments for OCD are cost-effective and non-disruptive, providing good value for public health organizations
• Drug therapy for OCD can have serious side effects, impacting the patient's everyday life
• Drug treatments for OCD, like SSRIs and Tricyclics, aim to increase neurotransmitter levels to manage symptoms