C15: Abnormal Psychology/Psychology Disorders

• A psychological disorder is a "harmful dysfunction" in which behavior is judged to be atypical, disturbing, maladaptive and unjustifiable
• Unusual/Atypical is what deviates statistically from typical behavior
• Maladaptive interferes with a person's ability to function in a particular situation
• Abnormal is what is considered abnormal or disturbing by society in which it occurs
• Abnormal is characterized by perceptual or cognitive dysfunction
• Theories of psychopathology: Psychoanalytic has the emphasization of unconscious conflicts and early childhood experiences
• Theories of psychopathology: Humanistic focuses on individuals subjective experiences, self-awareness and personal growth
• Theories of psychopathology: Cognitive focuses on changing and looking at one's thoughts
• Theories of psychopathology: Behavioral is the change of behavior through conditioning
• Theories of psychopathology: Sociocultural is the idea of looking things at a societal and cultural aspect
• Theories of psychopathology: Psychophysiological uses drugs and surgery
• The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-V) was created by the American Psychological Association; most widely used classification system for psychological disorders
• DSM-V doesn't tell one how to treat psychological disorders but does have different types of therapy/treatment
• Anxiety disorders include Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Panic disorder, Obsessive-Compulsive disorder, Phobias and PTSD
• Generalized Anxiety disorder (GAD) is characterized by persistent and pervasive feelings of anxiety without an external cause
• GAD symptoms

  • Worries don't completely consume but still feels anxious
  • Feels on edge about many/all aspects of life
  • General sense that something bad is about to happen, even when there's no apparent danger
  • Inability to remember when last felt relaxed/at ease
• GAD often begins at an early age, signs and symptoms may develop slowly
• Panic Disorder is the disturbance marked by sudden and severe anxiety attacks that have no obvious connections with events in victim's life
• Panic attack symptoms include:

  • Rapid heart rate
  • Sweating
  • Trembling
  • Shortness of breath
  • Hyperventilation
  • Chills
  • Hot flashes
  • Nausea
  • Abdominal cramping
  • Chest pain
• With panic disorder, some have agoraphobia
• Agoraphobia is a condition that involves panic which develops when a person find themselves in situations they cannot easily escape (eg. crowded places, open space, etc.)
• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a condition characterized by patterns of persistent, unwanted thoughts and behaviors
• OCD, Obsessive: Consists of thoughts, images or impulses that recur or persist despite a person's efforts to suppress them
• OCD, Compulsive: Repetitive, purposeful acts performed according to certain private "rules", in response to an obsession
• OCD, Compulsions: Senseless when calm, hard to resist compulsive behavior rituals when anxiety arises as a way to relieve tension
• OCD tends to run in families (genetic connection)
• Environment seems to play a factor in ones OCD
• Behavioral therapy may benefit OCD sufferers
• Common OCD obsessions:

  • Germs, dirt = obsessive cleaning
  • Symmetry = obsessive want for everything to be symmetrical
  • Territory = obsessively checking a place over and over again
• Phobias are persistent irrational fears associated with a specific object, activity or situation that causes substantial disruptions in our lives
• Common Phobias are heights, spiders, closed spaces, deep water, small holes, etc.
• PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) is the lingering of memories, nightmares or other symptoms for weeks after a severely threatening, uncontrollable event (eg. soldiers after the war)
• Learning perspective includes fear conditioning, stimulus generalization, reinforcement and observational learning
• Fear Conditioning is the usage of classical conditioning towards a fearful stimulus
• Stimulus Generalization is what some may develop into another phobia/anxiety (eg. fear of falling -> generalization = fear of flying)
• Biological Perspective includes natural selection, genetics and the brain
• Natural selection affects anxiety with fears of spiders, insects, snakes, etc.
• Genes affect anxiety as identical twins raised apart grew to have the same phobias
• The brain has imbalances of serotonin when one has anxiety
• Mood Disorders (AKA affective disorders) are abnormal disturbances in emotions/moods