psychopathology

• what are the four different definitions of abnormality?

  • Statistical infrequency
  • deviation from social norms
  • failure to function adequately
  • deviation from ideal mental health.
• define statistical infrequency?


  occurs when an individual has a less common characteristic, for example being more depressed, or being less intelligent than most of the population (Lower IQ)
• define deviation from social norms:


  concerns behaviour that is different from the accepted standards of behaviour in a community or society
• define failure to function adequately:


  occurs when someone is unable to cope with ordinary demands of day-to-day living
• define deviation from ideal mental health:


  occurs when someone does not meet a set of criteria for good mental health
• when is a person failing to function adequately?

  • no longer conforms to standard interpersonal rules, e.g maintaining eye contact + respecting personal space
  • experiences severe personal distress
  • behaviour becomes irrational or dangerous to themselves or others
• what's an example of failing to function adequately?

  • intellectual disability disorder
  • criteria = low IQ BUT diagnosis not based on this alone
  • an individual must be also failing to function adequately before a diagnosis is given
• what's a strength of the definition to the failure to function adequately of abnormality?


  • it represents a sensible threshold for when people need professional help
  • most have symptoms of mental disorder to some degree and some point, 25% people in the UK = experience a mental health problem in any given year
  • // many people press on in face of fairly severe symptoms, tends to be at the point that we cease to function adequately that people seek professional help or are noticed + referred for help
  • this criterion means that treatment + services can be targeted to those who need them most
• what's a limitation of the definition to failure to function adequately as a definition of abnormality?

  • easy to label non-standard lifestyle choices as abnormal - practice = hard to tell someone is ftf could choose to deviate from social norms e.g no job/permanent address + those who favour high risk classed as a danger to self - means make unusual choices are at risk of being labelled abnormal - freedom of choice may be restricted
• what is meant by a deviation from ideal mental health?

  occurs when someone does not meet a set of criteria for good mental health
• what does it mean to have ideal mental health?

  jahoda suggested that we are in good mental health if we meet the following criteria:

  • no symptoms or distress
  • rational + perceive ourselves accurately
  • self-actualise
  • cope w/ stress
  • realistic view of the world
• what's a strength of the definition of ideal mental health in relation to abnormality?

  • it is highly comprehensible
  • range of criteria distinguishing MH from illness, covers reasons why we'd reach out for help
  • means individual MH can be discussed meaningfully w/ a range of professionals who might take on diff theoretical views
  • means provides a checklist against which can assess selves + discuss MH issues w/ range of professionals
• what's a limitation of deviation from ideal MH as a definition of abnormality?

  • culture-bound - elements not equally applicable across cultures
  • jahoda's criteria = located in the context of the US + Western EU - concept of self-actualisation = dismissed as self-indulgence rest of the world. even w/in W.EU variation in value placed on independence
  • e.g. high = GER, low = ITA
  • means = difficult to apply concept of I-MH across cultures
• what's a strength of statistical infrequency as a definition of abnormality?

  • its useful - real world application
  • used in clinical practice, part of diagnosis + way to assess the severity of symptoms
  • e.g. diagnosis of intellectual disorder - req IQ = <70 + assessment tool - Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) - score =30+ - indicates severe depression
  • value of stat infreq = real life application in assessment + diagnostic procedures
• what's one limitation of statistical infrequency as a definition of abnormality?

  • stat infreq can = positive as well as negative
  • e.g. for every person w/ IQ below 70 - person w/ IQ above 130 - not view someone w/ high IQ = abnormal + not view someone with an very low BDI score = abnormal
  • Shows being at one end of a psychological scale = not necessarily make someone abnormal
  • means - although stat infreq = useful in assessment + diagnostic procedures - never is sufficient enough as the sole basis for defining abnormaility
• deviation from social norms A01 knowledge:

  • norms are specific to the culture we live in
  • social norms may be different for each generation and in each culture
  • there are relatively few behaviours considered universally abnormal on the basis they breach social norms
  • e.g. homosexuality was considered to be abnormal in our culture in the past and continues to be viewed as abnormal and illegal in some cultures
• what's a strength of deviation from social norms?

  • it is useful used in clinical practise
  • e.g. key defining characteristics of antisocial personality disorder = failure to conform to culturally normal ethical behaviour i.e recklessness, aggression - signs of the disorder are all deviations from social norms
  • shows deviation in social norms has real life value in psychiatry + indicators of disorders
• what's a limitation of the definition of deviation from social norms?

  • the variation of social norms in different cultures + different situations
  • one culture may label someone from another culture as abnormal using their standard than the persons standards
  • e.g hearing voices is a norm in some cultures, its a message from ancestors - would be seen as a sign of abnormality in the UK
  • e.g within social contexts - aggressive + deceitful behaviour = wrong in family life, not in corporate deal-making
  • means = difficult to judge deviation from social norms- different situations + cultures
• what is the DSM System?

  • there are a number of systems for clarifying + diagnosing mental health problems
  • the best known is the DSM
  • stands for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder
  • published by the American Psychiatric Association
  • the DSM is updated every so often as ideas about abnormality changes
  • the current version is the fifth edition - referred to DSM-5
• what's a phobia?

  an overwhelming and unreasonable fear of an object or situation that possesses little real danger but provokes anxiety and avoidance
• DSM-5 categories of phobias:

  • all phobias are categories by excessive fear and anxiety, triggered by an object, place or situation
  • the extent of fear is out of proportion to any real danger presented by the phobic stimulus
• DSM-5 categories of phobias:

  • DSM recognises the following categories of phobias + related anxiety disorders:
  • specific phobias - of an object or situation
  • social anxiety - of a social situation, a social phobia
  • agoraphobia - of being outside or in a public space
• what are the behavioural characteristics of phobias?

  • panic
  • avoidance
  • endurance
• Panic:

  • may panic in response to presence of phobic stimulus
  • involves a range of behaviours:
  • crying
  • screaming
  • running away
  • children react differently:
  • freezing
  • tantrum
  • clinging to someone
• Avoidance:

  • unless facing fear, people go to a lots of effort to prevent coming into contact with the phobic stimulus, thus making it hard to go about daily life
  • interferes with:
  • work
  • education
  • social life
• endurance:

  • when people choose to remain in presence of phobic stimulus
  • e.g. fear of spiders, may stay in the room with the spider, keeping an eye on it rather than leaving
• what are the emotional characteristics of phobias?

  • anxiety
  • fear
  • emotional response is unreasonable
• Anxiety:

  • phobias are anxiety disorders
  • by definition they involve an emotional response of anxiety, an unpleasant state of high arousal
  • prevents a person relaxing and difficult to experience any positive emotions
  • can be long term
• Fear:

  • is the immediate and extremely unpleasant response when encounter or think about a phobic stimulus
  • usually more intense but experienced for shorter periods of time than anxiety
• Emotional response is unreasonable:

  • anxiety and fear is much greater than is 'normal' and disproportionate to any threat posed
• what are cognitive characteristics?

  • concerned with ways in which people process information
  • people with phobias process information about phobic stimuli differently from other objects or situations
• what are the cognitive characteristics of phobias?

  • selective attention to the phobic stimulus
  • irrational beliefs
  • cognitive distortions
• Selective attention to the phobic stimulus:

  • if see phobic stimulus, it is hard to look away
  • keeping our attention on something dangerous is good as it gives us the best chance of reacting quickly to a threat, but is not useful when the fear is irrational
• Irrational beliefs:

  • person with a phobia, may have unfounded thoughts in relation to phobic stimulus that can't be explained and don't have basis in reality
• cognitive distortions:

  • perceptions of a person with a phobia may be inaccurate and unrealistic
• what's the two-model process?

  • an explanation for the onset and persistence of disorders that create anxiety, such as phobias
  • the two process are:
  • classical conditioning for the onset
  • operant conditioning for persistence
• what is the behavioural approach to explaining phobias?

  • emphasis the role of learning in the acquisition of behaviour
  • focuses on observable behaviour so is geared towards explaining behavioural characteristics of phobias
  • Mowrer proposes the two-process model, based on the behavourial approach to phobias:
  • states phobias are acquired by classical conditioning
  • are maintained because of operant conditioning
• Acquisition of phobias by classical conditioning:

  • involves learning to associate something which has initially no fear of (neutral stimulus) with something that already triggers a fear response (unconditioned stimulus)
  • conditioning is then generalised to other similar objects/situations
• Acquisition of phobias by classical conditioning:

  • Watson + Rayner - created a phobia in a nine month old baby - 'little Albert' who had no unusual anxiety at the start of experiment
  • when shown a white rat - tried to play with it
  • shown again and R's made a loud noise, with a iron bar next to baby's ear
  • noise = UCS, creates UCR = fear
  • rat (NS) + bar (UCS), neutral stimulus associated with UCS - produces a fear response
  • rat = CS + produces CR
  • conditioning is then generalised to similar objects - Albert scared of furry objects also
• Maintenance of phobias by operant conditioning:

  • response acquired from classical conditioning, declines over time - phobias are long lasting, Mowrer explained this as a result of operant conditioning
  • takes place when our behaviour is reinforced or punished
  • tends to increase the frequency of a behaviour, this is true of both negative + positive reinforcement