Environmental explanation for OCD

• What evidence supports the environmental explanation for OCD?

  Cromer (2007) found that over 50% of people with OCD had experienced past trauma, and the severity of OCD symptoms was positively correlated with the severity of the trauma.
• What is the diathesis stress model?

  Diathesis: biological vulnerability

  Stress: environmental trigger

  This model suggests that to develop a mental disorder e.g. OCD, a person needs to have both a genetic vulnerability and an environmental stressor.