psychopathology

• definitions of abnormality= a criteria for determining psychological and behavioural states that lead to impairment of interpersonal functioning and distress to others
• deviation from social norms= sees abnormality as behaviour which violates social rules
• deviation from social norms evaluation=

  + shows developmental norms ages as it establishes what behaviours are normal for different ages for example using a nappy at aged 2 is normal but not at 40 years

  -social norms vary across different cultures so its difficult to know when they are being broken for example a man wearing a skirt is abnormal but a Scottish man wearing a kilt is normal
• failure to function adequately= sees abnormality as inability to cope with day to day living
• failure to function adequately evaluation=

  +this provides a practical checklist that individuals can use to access their level of abnormality

  -behaviour may cause distress to others and can be regarded as dysfunctional while the person in question feels no distress.
• deviation from the ideal mental health=sees abnormality as a failure to meet the criteria for a perfect psychological well being. this identifies characteristics people should have in order to be considered normal. Jahoda characteristics consists of a positive self view, personal growth and self actualisation.
• deviation from the ideal mental health evaluation-

  +this considers an individual as a whole person then focusing on individual areas of their behaviour (holistic)

  -perceptions of reality change over time once seeing visions where seen as a religious experience but now might be regarded as a sign of schizophrenia.
• statistical infrequency= sees abnormality as consisting of behaviours that are rare. behaviours that deviate significantly from the average are abnormal this implies there is a normal curve for behaviours.
• statistical infrequency evaluation=

  +this relies on real unbiased data so it is objective when defining abnormality

  -doesn't consider cultural factors as its only statically normal in one culture but may not for others
• phobias= anxiety disorder that is characterised by extreme irrational fears
• phobias characteristics=

  behavioural= anxiety response = confrontations with feared objects creates a anxiety response, efforts are made to reduce this

  emotional= persistent = phobias produce high anxiety levels due to the anticipation of feared objects or situations

  cognitive= recognition of exaggerated anxiety= people with phobias are consciously ware that the anxiety levels they experience are overstated.
• depression= a mood disorder characterised by feelings of unhappiness and hopelessness
• depression characteristics=

  behavioural= loss of energy = can have reduced energy resulting in fatigue and inactivity

  emotional= worthlessness = constant feelings of reduced worth and feelings of guilt

  cognitive= thoughts of death = constant thoughts of death or suicide
• OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder)= anxiety disorder characterised by persistent, recurrent, unpleasant thoughts and repetitive behaviours.
• OCD characteristics=

  behavioural= social impairment = anxiety levels are so high as to the limit the ability to conduct meaningful relationships

  emotional= extreme anxiety =persistent or forbidden ideas create high anxiety levels

  cognitive= persistent thoughts = sufferers experience constantly repeated obsessive thoughts
• behavioural explanation of phobias= a theory that sees phobias as acquired and maintained through environmental learning experiences via the two process model.
• two process model=

  1. acquisition (onset) of phobias= seen through occurring directly through classical conditioning e.g. being bitten by a dog
  2. maintenance of phobias = seen as occurring through operant conditioning where avoiding or escaping from feared object acts as a negative reinforcer (reward is the reduction of anxiety)
• classical conditioning= one of the behavioural principles of learning and sees learning as occurring by association. it is a type of learning where a response produced naturally by a certain stimulus becomes associated with another stimulus not normally associated with that response.
• operant conditioning= this is learning through consequences it occurs through reinforcement or punishment of the consequence. positive reinforcement is where behaviour is strengthened and likely to reoccur due to positive consequences. negative reinforcement is where behaviour is strengthened and likely to reoccur due to avoidance of negative consequences.
• little albert research into phobias= lab experiment conducted with an 11 month old baby who lived in a hospital with his mother who was a nurse. he was presented with stimuli a white rat, a rabbit and some cotton wool. his response was recorded. he shown no fear to the stimuli. a fear reaction was created by striking a steel bar with a hammer behind his head making him cry. then when playing with the objects this was done 3 times. he was supposed to be de conditioned but his mother took him out of the hospital.
• little albert study results= when showed the white rat or any other white object he cried and crawled away.
• behaviourist approach in explaining phobias evaluation=

  + very useful in the development of treatments e.g. little albert gained a phobias of the white rat he learned this through conditioning so it can be unlearnt showing practical application

  -most completed in lab experiments showing low ecological validity and not realistic but has control over extraneous variables.

  -reductionist explanation as it only takes into account the behaviour side not cognitive.
• systematic desensitisation= technique for the treatment of anxiety related disorder. this is based on that what we have been learned (conditioned) can be unlearned. this starts with imagination and they are taught relaxation and breathing techniques.
• systematic desensitisation process=

  1. taught how to relax their muscles completely
  2. therapist and patient will imagine scenes each one causing more anxiety (anxiety hierarchy)
  3. patients meet each scenario and relaxing once the patient is relaxed they move on to the next.
  4. patient eventually masters the feared situation
• flooding= involves overwhelming the individuals senses with the item or situation that causes anxiety. so the person will realise no harm will occur. there is no step by step build up and they are exposed repeatedly in a incentive way. the senses are flooded through thoughts, images and experiences.
• phobias treatment evaluation=

  +SD has high ecological validity as they use real life setting due to them using the specific incident

  -flooding gives no breathing techniques making it less useful in the long run

  -SD can be more expensive as it is a longer process so it isn't as cost effective

  +flooding can be unethical as there is no protection from harm they will feel overwhelmed with no relaxation techniques.
• cognitive approach to explaining depression= a theory that perceives depression as determined through maladaptive thought processes.
• becks negative triad= a model of cognitive biases which are characteristic features of depression. the triad consists of three elements. beck believed people become depressed because the world is seen negatively through negative schemas which dominate thinking and are triggered whenever individuals are in situations that are similar to those in which negative schemas are learned.
• world (everyone hates me because i am worthless)

  future (ill never be good at anything because everyone hates me)

  self (i am worthless)
• Ellis ABC model= an explanation that sees depression occurring though three components. they blame external events for their unhappiness however that is their interpretation of these events that is to blame for their distress.
• ABC model

  A= activating event= something happens in the environment around you e.g. teacher telling you she is unhappy with your work

  B= beliefs= you hold a belief about the event or situation e.g. you see yourself as a failure

  C= consequence= you have an emotional response to your belief e.g. feeling worthless.
• cognitive approach to explaining depression evaluation=

  -doesn't explain all aspects of depression making it reductionist as it only explains the basic symptoms of depression but it is a complex disorder not all can be explained

  +has practical application for CBT it forms the basis of CBT and all aspects of depression can be fought in CBT
• treatment for depression CBT- a treatment that seeks to replace the irrational thought processes underpinning depression with more rational ones.

  20 sessions over 16 weeks now days they try and do it at a quicker pace. background information is needed for the therapist to understand the circumstances. aims to identify and alter negative beliefs and dysfunctional behaviours.
• treatment for depression REBT (rational emotive behaviour therapy)- a form of CBT for depression that seeks to replace negative self statements with more positive ones. this is a add on to the ABC model. added D= disputations to challenge irrational beliefs. adds E= effective new beliefs to replace the irrational ones.
• • CBT research= Lincoln completed a questionnaire to identify stroke victims who had depression. 19 patients were given CBT for four months and it shown reduced symptoms showing CBT is a suitable treatment
• CBT evaluation=

  +supporting evidence Lincoln showing high construct validity showing it is a effective treatment

  -it can take 16 weeks to complete making it a long process so it is time consuming also making it expensive

  -it requires motivation from the patient as it involves the cognitive mind which cant be seen so its down to the patient to help themselves.
• REBT evaluation=

  + doesn't take as long as CBT making it less time consuming and more cost effective

  + supporting evidence from David as he studied 170 patients with depression he treated them for 14 weeks and it shown they had a better outcome then those on drug therapy

  -this also requires motivation from the patients as it also involves the cognitive mind which can not be seen.
• obsessions= what people think about. compromise forbidden or inappropriate ideas and images that aren't based in reality e.g. saying that germs are everywhere.
• compulsions= they are a result of obsessions. they compromise uncontrollable urges to repeatedly perform tasks and behaviours to prevent feared events
• genetic explains for OCD= OCD is polygenic because more then one specific gene has been identified in the onset of OCD.

  Taylor completed a study with an meta analysis finding 230 genes can develop OCD.