Definitions of Abnormality

• Definitions of abnormality:

  reasons for abnormality include;

  • deviation from social norms
  • failure to function adequately
  • deviation from ideal mental health
  • statistical infrequency
• Deviation from social norms:

  • a social norm is an unwritten rule that sets the standard of behaviour within a society. When someone moves away from unwritten rules (the social norms) of a society they could be labelled as abnormal
  • for example, someone who washes their hands 20 times a day would not be seen to follow the social norms and it could be a sign of OCD
• Evaluation of deviation from social norms to explain abnormality:

  W - social norms change over time

  W - social norms change between culture

  W - comparison with other definitions - holistic approach is more appropriate
• Social norms change over time (identify):

  • a limitation of this definition is that it ignores that social norms change over time
• Social norms change over time (explain):

  • the norms of a society often change over time as social attitudes change
  • what was once seen as unacceptable may now be acceptable. An example of this is homosexuality, which was illegal in the UK in the late 20th century but now is very accepted
  • it was not removed from the DSM classification of mental disorders until 1990
• Social norms change over time (conclusion):

  • this questions the temporal validity to deviation from social norms as a definition of abnormality because we can't generalise what abnormality is to the modern day
  • this is due to different norms becoming socially acceptable
  • our attitudes constantly change, meaning our approach to mental illness is outdated
• Social norms change between culture (identify):

  • a disadvantage of using this definition to label abnormality is that it is culturally relative
• Social norms change between culture (explain):

  • social norms vary within and across cultures and so behaviour that is seen as 'normal' in one culture may not be seen as normal in another
  • it is only when being immersed in the culture for a long period of time that a decision can be made (an emic approach)
  • additionally, social norms are dictated by the majority within a culture, so members of sub-cultures could have different social norms , even within one culture, leading to inconsistency in labelling behaviour as 'normal' or 'abnormal'
• Social norms change between culture (conclusion):

  • therefore, this questions the population validity as we are not able to generalise abnormality to all cultures meaning that in some cultures people may be labelled as 'abnormal' and in others 'normal' suggesting it's an inappropriate way to label mental health
  • to overcome cultural bias when looking at social norms, an emic approach should be adopted to consider the cultural background of the individual who is breaking the social norms to decide whether they're deviating from the unwritten rules or demonstrating cultural differences
• Comparison with other definitions - holistic approach is more appropriate (identify):

  • an issue with all definitions for abnormality is that neither definition is satisfactory on its own
• Comparison with other definitions - holistic approach is more appropriate (explain):

  • due to their subjective nature, each of the definitions used to label abnormal behaviour, each fail to consider important aspects of human behaviour
  • for example, a clinical diagnosis could not be achieved without considering whether they meet some of the criteria for ideal mental health, alongside identifying the behaviour statistically within the population, and comparing with social norms and maladaptiveness
• Comparison with other definitions - holistic approach is more appropriate (conclusion):

  • the definition of deviation from social norms is reductionist as it is too simple as we are only focussing on one element
  • therefore a more holistic approach is needed to successfully identify abnormality (to avoid incorrect classification and false diagnosis)
• Failure to function adequately:

  • someone is abnormal is they are unable to cope with everyday life and do everyday activities such as brushing your teeth, maintaining relationships and going to work
  • if someone does not maintain this normal pattern of behaviour, we might argue that they are failing to function adequately
  • for example, someone with depression may not get out of bed and maintain personal hygiene
  • Rosehhan and Seligman identified some characteristics of abnormal behaviour
• Rosenhan and Seligman:

  Rosenhan and Seligman identified some characteristics of abnormal behaviour that were related to failure to function adequately. These include;

  • maladaptiveness - this refers to when the person's behaviour interferes with their ability to keep to their normal daily routine and is not good for survival
  • unpredictability - if a person's behaviour is erratic and sometimes uncontrolled
  • discomfort - this can be personal distress or discomfort of the observer, if their behaviour affects other people watching the behaviour
  • irrational - if a person's behaviour appears unusual and hard to understand
• Evaluation of failure to function adequately as to explain abnormality:

  W - abnormality is not always accompanied by dysfunction

  W - some people are normal but they may be dysfunctional

  W - comparison with other definitions - holistic approach is more appropriate
• Abnormality is not always accompanied by dysfunction (identify):

  • a limitation of this definition is that abnormality is not always accompanied by dysfunction
• Abnormality is not always accompanied by dysfunction (explain):

  • there are many examples of people who are able to have 'normal' functioning in everyday life, yet mask difficulties they are facing
  • for example, someone with depression may still be able to get up an go to work, despite the illness
  • another well known example could be psychopathy. Harold Shipman appeared to function perfectly normally, being a respectable doctor and member of society; yet, he murdered at least 215 patients over a 23 year period, demonstrating an underlying disturbance in functioning
• Abnormality is not always accompanied by dysfunction (conclusion):

  • this questions the validity of failure to function adequately as a definition of abnormality because it may define abnormal people (such as people with depression) as normal just because they can go about their normal day (there are underlying issues we can't see) meaning individuals can be misdiagnosed for their behaviour and then go either untreated or not convicted which has implications for both individual wellbeing and the legal system
• Some people are normal but they may be dysfunctional (identify):

  • the problem with this definition is that it ignores the role of context
• Some people are normal but they may be dysfunctional (explain):

  • some people are normal, but they may be dysfunctional at that time
  • there are times in peoples lives when it is normal to suffer from distress, such as having a bereavement or enduring the stress of exams
  • this distress may affect their functioning such as sleeping or personal hygiene
  • in these contexts, this level of dysfunction is considered normal and psychologically healthy
• Some people are normal but they may be dysfunctional (conclusion):

  • therefore, we can falsely label those who are going through a temporary stressful period as being abnormal which has negative implications for diagnoses of maladaptive disorders like depression and may lead to a self-fulfilling prophecy
  • the definition is not appropriate as we may under or over diagnose an individual
• Comparison with other definitions - holistic approach is more appropriate (identify):

  • an issue with all definitions for abnormality is that neither definition is satisfactory on its own
• Comparison with other definitions - holistic approach is more appropriate (explain):

  • due to their subjective nature, each of the definitions used to label abnormal behaviour, each fail to consider important aspects of human behaviour
  • for example, a clinical diagnosis could not be achieved without considering whether they meet some of the criteria for ideal mental health, alongside identifying the behaviour statistically within the population, and comparing with social norms and maladaptiveness
• Comparison with other definitions - holistic approach is more appropriate (conclusion):

  • the definition of failing to adequately function is reductionist as it is too simple as we are only focussing on one element
  • therefore a more holistic approach is needed to successfully identify abnormality (to avoid incorrect classification and false diagnosis)
• Deviation from ideal mental health:

  this definition states that abnormality is the absence of wellbeing. Jahoda came up with a set of criteria that define ideal mental health;

  • self-actualisation - being able to fulfil your potential
  • stress - need to be able to resist stress
  • identity - positive attitudes / self esteem
  • autonomy - control over your own life
  • accurate perception of reality - not hallucinating
  • mastery of the environment - being able to handle change

  if you do not meet all these criteria, then you are classed as abnormal. For example, someone with depression may not have positive attitudes about themselves
• Evaluation of deviation from ideal mental health to explain abnormality:

  • over demanding criteria
  • ethnocentric
  • comparison with other definitions - holistic approach is more appropriate
• Over demanding criteria (identify):

  • a disadvantage with this definition is that it has over demanding criteria
• Over demanding criteria (explain):

  • this definition suggests that to be normal, you must have all Jahoda's criteria and even the absence of one element would make you abnormal
  • most people do not meet all the ideals
  • for example, very few people experience personal growth all the time. Therefore, most people in the population would be labelled as abnormal
• Over demanding criteria (conclusion):

  • this questions that validity of deviation from ideal mental health as a definition of abnormality because it could potentially lead to misdiagnosis if individuals aren't meeting all the criteria on a daily basis and skew the idea of what 'abnormal' is
  • a high percentage of the population would be falsely considered as abnormal
  • this may lead to a self-fulfilling prophecy if individuals are falsely labelled
• Ethnocentric (identify):

  • a limitation of this definition is that it is culturally bias towards western societies
• Ethnocentric (explain):

  • the criterion for ideal mental health is based on western ideals such as self-actualisation are only relevant in individualistic cultures (where we strive to meet our own individual goals)
  • in a collectivist culture like Russia or North Korea (where they value group goals), they do not pursue self-actualisation, meaning that this definition is not applicable to their culture
• Ethnocentric (conclusion):

  • therefore, this explanation lacks population validity as the definition of abnormality cant be used to identify abnormality cross-culturally so it can't be generalised to a wider population
  • to overcome this we should consider indigenous psychology and use native researchers (emic approach) as they have an understanding of a cultural background
  • they are aware if they're deviating from ideal mental health or just displaying ethnic differences
• Comparison with other definitions - holistic approach is more appropriate (identify):

  • an issue with all definitions for abnormality is that neither definition is satisfactory on its own
• Comparison with other definitions - holistic approach is more appropriate (explain):

  • due to their subjective nature, each of the definitions used to label abnormal behaviour, each fail to consider important aspects of human behaviour
  • for example, a clinical diagnosis could not be achieved without considering whether they meet some of the criteria for ideal mental health, alongside identifying the behaviour statistically within the population, and comparing with social norms and maladaptiveness
• Comparison with other definitions - holistic approach is more appropriate (conclusion):

  • the definition of deviation from ideal mental health is reductionist as it is too simple as we are only focussing on one element
  • therefore a more holistic approach is needed to successfully identify abnormality (to avoid incorrect classification and false diagnosis)
• Statistical infrequency:

  • behaviour is seen as abnormal if it is statistically rare and falls within the extreme ends of a normal distribution 'bell' curve
  • if the behaviour measured falls outside the range that is typical for most people, it is classified as abnormal
  • for example, only 1% of the UK population suffers from schizophrenia
• Evaluation of statistical infrequency to explain abnormality:

  W - some mental health conditions are actually very common

  W - infrequent characteristics can be positive

  W - comparison with other definitions - holistic approach is more appropriate
• Some mental health conditions are actually very common (identify):

  • a disadvantage with this definition is that some mental health conditions are actually very common
• Some mental health conditions are actually very common (explain):

  • this definition suggests that to be defined as abnormal, the behaviour should be statistically rare, falling outside normal ranges for the population
  • however, depression affects 1 in 3 people in the UK
  • according to this definition, this would not classify someone as abnormal and they would not receive any treatment
• Some mental health conditions are actually very common (conclusion):

  • this questions the validity of statistical infrequency as a definition of abnormality because it may be inaccurately identifying people as abnormal or misdiagnosing