Chapter 2

• models of abnormality


  = models or paradigms used by scientists & clinicians to treat abnormality

  • Explain events and basic assumptions

  • Guide treatment techniques and principles

  • Involve several models to explain abnormality
• The biological model


  • Has biological basis and medical perspective

  • Considers illness to be brought about by malfunctioning parts of the organism

  • Points to problems in brain anatomy or brain chemistry
• How do biological theorists explain abnormal behavior?

  • brain anatomy
  • brain chemistry
  • more about neurotransmitters (NTs)
  • Chemical activity
• Brain anatomy

  • Neurons and glia cells

  • Brain structures

  • Cerebrum (cortex, corpus callosum, basal ganglia, hippocampus, amygdala)

  • Connections found among some psychological disorders and specific brain structures
• Brain chemistry

  • Neuron-to-neuron transmission

  • Dendrites

  • Axons

  • Nerve endings

  • Synapses

  • Neurotransmitters

  • Receptors
• More about neurotransmitters (NTs)

  • Dozens of identified NTs in brain

  • Abnormal activity in certain NTs can lead to specific mental disorders
• Chemical activity


  • Abnormal activity in endocrine system (hormones) is also related to mental disorders

  • Abnormal secretion of the hormone cortisol is linked to anxiety and mood disorders
• result of genetic inheritance

  (sometimes) Abnormalities in brain anatomy or chemistry
• where does inheritance play a part in

  • mood disorders
  • schizophrenia
  • other mental disorders
• How are actions and reactions produced in most cases?

  combination of several genes
• What are mistakes of inheritance?

  genes that contribute to mental disorders

  • Mutations

  • Inherited after a mutation in the family line

  • Result of normal evolutionary principles
• What do evolutionary theorists suggest?

  • Genes contribute to adaption and survival

  • Contemporary pressures may cause genetic inheritance to be less adaptive + leave some people prone to abnormal psychological patterns
• Biological treatment


  = attempting to identify the physical source of dysfunction to determine the course of treatment
• 3 leading biological treatments today

  • Drug therapy

  • Brain stimulation

  • Psychosurgery
• Drug therapy

  = biological treatment

  • 1950s: start psychotropic medications
  • 4 major drug groups used in therapy
• What are the 4 major drug groups used in drug therapy?

  • Antianxiety drugs (anxiolytics; minor tranquilizers)

  • Antidepressant drugs

  • Antibipolar drugs (mood stabilizers)

  • Antipsychotic drug
• Brain stimulation


  = biological treatment

  • direct or indirect brain stimulation
• What are the approaches for brain stimulation treatment?

  • Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)

  • Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)

  • Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS)

  • Deep brain stimulation
• psychosurgery (or neurosurgery)

  = biological treatment

  • Brain surgery for mental disorders (early days: lobotomy; nowadays: mostly only for things such as untreatable epilepsy)
• What are strengths of the biological Model?

  • Enjoys considerable respect in the field

  • Constantly produces valuable new information

  • Treatments bring great relief
• What are the weaknesses of the biological model?

  • Limits understanding of abnormal function by excluding nonbiological factors

  • May produce significant undesirable effects (e.g., substance dependence, side effects)
• the psychodynamic model 


  -> Freud developed theory of psychoanalysis

  • Proposed person's behavior determined largely by underlying unconscious, dynamic, psychological forces

  • Suggested abnormal symptoms are the result of conflict among these force
• Freud's explanation of normal & abnormal functioning

  3 unconscious forces shape personality: : instinctual needs,

  rational thinking, and moral standards

  • Id: Pleasure principle

  • Ego: Reality principle

  • Superego: Morality principle
• id

  = pleasure principle
• Ego


  = reality principle
• Superego


  = morality princriple
• Conflicts between Freud's explanation of Normal and Abnormal Functioning?


  • Some degree of conflict

  • Healthy personality = balance

  • Dysfunction = excessive conflict
• How Did Freud Explain Normal and Abnormal Functioning?

  proposed developmental stages:

  • New events and pressures require adjustment in the id, ego, and superego at

  each stage

  • If successful → personal growth

  • If unsuccessful → fixation at early developmental stage, leading to psychological

  abnormality
• Psychodynamic Therapies

  --> Seek to uncover past trauma and inner conflicts with the therapist acting as a guide

  • Free association

  • Therapist interpretation

  • Resistance

  • Transference

  • Dream interpretation

  • Catharsis

  • Working through
• Psychodynamic Therapies- current trends

  • Short-term psychodynamic therapies

  • Relational psychoanalytic therapy
• Strengths of Psychodynamic Model

  • importance of psychological theories and systematic

  treatment for abnormality

  • Saw abnormal functioning nested in the same processes as normal functioning
• Weaknesses of Psychodynamic Model


  • Unsupported ideas; difficult to research

  • Non-observable concepts

  • Inaccessible to human subjects (unconscious)
• The Cognitive-Behavioral Model


  • Focuses on maladaptive behaviors and/or cognitions in

  understanding and treating psychological abnormality

  • Shares key principles between behavioral and cognitive perspectives
• Behavioral dimension of the cognitive-behavioral model

  • Using conditioning

  • Classical conditioning

  • Modeling

  • Operant conditioning

  • Therapists, as teachers, seek to help replace problematic behaviors with

  more appropriate behaviors
• Cognitive dimension of the Cognitive-Behavioral model

  • Focuses on maladaptive thinking processes

  • Inaccurate/disturbing assumptions and attitudes

  • Illogical thinking

  • Therapists help clients recognize, challenge, and change problematic thinking
• Cognitive-behavioral interplay


  = Behavioral and cognitive components are interwoven in most contemporary theories and therapies
• Cognitive-behavioral interplay- Example: Social anxiety disorder

  • Anxiety levels increase when clients enter social situations; avoidance and safety behaviors appear

  • Exposure therapy
• Strenghts of the Cognitive-Behavioral Model


  • Powerful force in clinical field

  • Very broad appeal

  • Clinically useful

  • Focuses on a uniquely human

  process

  • Theories lend themselves to

  research

  • Therapies are effective in treating

  several disorders
• Cognitive-Behavioral Model- Weaknesses

  • Precise role of cognition in abnormality has yet to be determined (cause or

  consequence?)

  • Therapies do not help everyone

  • Some changes may not be possible to achieve
• new wave of therapies

  • Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT)

  • Mindfulness-based techniques