Statistical Infrequency

• Implies that a disorder is abnormal if its frequency is more than two standard deviations away from the mean incidence rates represented on a normally-distributed bell curve.
• STRENGTH

  • Statistical infrequency is almost always used in the clinical diagnoses of mental health disorders as a comparison with a baseline or ‘normal’ value. This is used to assess the severity of the disorder
• WEAKNESS

  • Statistical infrequency makes the assumption that any abnormal characteristics are automatically negative, whereas this is not always the case. For example, displaying abnormal levels of empathy or having a high IQ score would rarely be looked down upon as negative characteristics which require treatment.