AO3 - FFA

• One strength of FFA as a definition of abnormality is that it acknowledges the personal experience of the individual. For example, although some of the criteria may be difficult to measure, the definition does take into account the person’s subjective experience and their perception of their ability to cope with everyday life and whether or not they are feeling sever personal distress. Therefore FFA captures the experience of many people who need help, suggesting it is a useful definition for assessing abnormality.
• However, whilst it is easier to identify who is not coping day to day, a weakness of FFA as a definition of abnormality is that is easy to label non-standard life choices as abnormal. It can be very hard to say whether someone is really failing to function adequately and when they have chosen to deviate from social norms. For example, those who favour high risk leisure activities could be classed unreasonably as irrational and perhaps a danger to themselves and therefore abnormal. Therefore, this is a limitation of FFA as people who make unusual choices are at risk of being labelled abnormal.