Definitions of abnormality

• Abnormality


  Very difficult to define
• Statistical Deviation


  A way to measure how abnormal someone is by how often the abnormal behaviour occurs
• Atypical


  Anything that occurs very rarely in relation to the entire population is termed "abnormal"
• Normal Distribution


  • Most people's scores will cluster around the average
  • As we move away from the average, fewer and fewer people will attain that score
• Normal


  Those who fall within the "golden mean" - those who do what most other people do
• Abnormal


  Those whose behaviour differs from that of the majority
• Measurable human characteristics


  • Depression
  • Anxiety
  • Intelligence
• Average IQ score is about 100, only 2% of people have a score below 70</b>
• Individuals scoring below 70 IQ


  Very unusual or 'abnormal', are liable to receive a diagnosis of a psychological disorder-intellectual disability disorder
• "Abnormal"


  It is important to decide how far above or below someone has to be in order to be labelled as 'abnormal'
• Standard deviation


  • A measure of the spread of a group of scores and how far each score is away from the average
• Calculating standard deviation


  Work out how far each score is away from the average
• Cut-off point


  Generally put at +/-2 SDs from the mean
• Standard deviation is useful in clinical practice
• Deviation from Social Norms

  Behaviour that is seen as unacceptable and unexpected within a given society
• Social norms


  Behaviours that are seen as acceptable and expected within a given society (e.g. politeness)
• Someone violates social norms

  They could be deemed abnormal
• People usually notice when someone's behaviour is a deviation from social norms
• Deviation from social norms is seen as unpredictable
• Deviation from social norms causes observer discomfort
• Deviation from social norms

  Violates moral or ideal standards
• Behaviour that deviates from social norms can be incomprehensible to others
• And make them feel threatened or uncomfortable
• Cultural Social Norms


  • People diagnosed with antisocial personality disorder are commonly known as psychopaths
  • Failure to conform to social norms with respect to lawful behaviours as indicated by repeatedly performing acts that are grounds for arrest (DSM, American psychiatric association, 2000)
• Norms are specific to the culture we live in
• Failure to Function Adequately


  A person may cross the line between 'abnormal' and 'normal' at the point where they can no longer cope with the demands of everyday life and they fail to function adequately
• A person is considered not functioning adequately when they are unable to maintain basic standards of nutrition and hygiene
• A person is considered not functioning adequately if they cannot hold down a job or maintain relationships with people around them
• Someone is failing to function adequately when they experience severe personal distress
• Someone is failing to function adequately when their behavior becomes irrational or dangerous
• Someone is failing to function adequately when they no longer conform to impersonal rules such as maintaining eye contact and respecting personal space
• Rosenhan proposed these signs to determine when someone is not coping
• A very different way to look at normality and abnormality is to ignore the issue of what makes someone abnormal but instead look at what makes a person 'normal'
• In other words, we consider deviation from mental health (how much are people moving away from ideal mental health)
• Once we have a picture of how we should be psychologically healthy, we can begin to identify who deviates from this ideal
• Jahoda's Criteria for Ideal Mental Health


  • Being rational and perceiving oneself accurately
  • Having no distress
  • Having a realistic view of the world
  • Self-actualising
  • Having independence
  • Being able to cope with stress
  • Being able to successfully work, love and enjoy leisure
  • Having a good self-esteem
• The more criteria someone fails to meet, the more abnormal they are