Historical Context

• Prehistoric View


  Mental illness due to the supernatural and being possessed by demons. The treatment was trepanning to release the spirits from the head.

  Unscientific

  Reductionist

  Not useful
• 400BC Ancient Greece


  Mental illness came from an imbalance of humours in the body (biological approach). The treatment was phlebotomies and bloodletting.

  • Unscientific
  • Reductionist
  • Not useful
• Mid 19th Century


  Mentally ill were viewed as treatable and requiring compassion so lunatic asylums were created. This treatment encouraged rest and socialisation.
• Late 19th Century


  Mental illness is due to psychological factors and freud suggested this was due to unconscious processes of the mind. The treatment was talking therapies such as psychoanalysis.

  • Unscientific
  • Holistic
  • Useful
• 20th Century


  Mental illness attributed to physical factors such as abnormal brain structures and levels of neurotransmitter. The treatments included lobotomies, insulin treatments and medication (chlorpromazine).

  • Scientific
  • Holistic
  • Useful
• Statistical Infrequency- behaviour rarely seen in the general population.

  +an objective way of measuring abnormality that can be applied in a reliable way

  -unhelpful to label those with the highest or lowest IQ scores as abnormal as they may be perfectly happy and function well in society

  • 1% of the population is schizophrenic
• Deviation from the social norm- behaviour that is a departure from what one society or culture defines as acceptable.

  +considers the desirability of a behaviour and is therefore more useful

  -ethnocentric definition that can’t be applied universally as different cultures have different ideas of what is abnormal

  • in some cultures hearing voices is seen as talking to spirits or ancestors in others its seen as abnormal
• Maladaptiveness- when a person’s way of thinking, emotional responses or behaviour prevents them from functioning well.


  +recognises the subjective experience of the individual so it has face validity when trying to diagnose

  -this doesn’t define abnormality it determines the extent of the individual’s problems

  • when panic attacks stop you from leaving the house
• Issues With Defining Abnormality

  Unethical- an individual may lose their identity and start seeing themselves in terms of their diagnosis

  Socially Sensitive- can lead to labelling as others may begin to see certain behaviours as symptomatic

  Culturally Sensitive- not all cultures have the same definitions of abnormality so individuals may not receive the same help consistently.
• Positives of Defining Abnormality

  • Useful- an individual can receive medical or psychological help or wider assistance such as benefits from the state if they’re unable to work which can improve their wellbeing.
• DSM5

  Used by psychiatrists to classify abnormal behaviours and diagnose patients. Originally published by the American Psychiatric Association. It adapts over time by adding and removing conditions. It contains description, symptoms and other criteria to allow reliable diagnoses of 157 mental disorders. A wide range of experts were involved in creating the manual improving its validity.
• ICD11

  This defines diseases, disorders, injuries and other related health conditions including mental disorders in chapter 5. It is produced by the World Health Organisation and is translated into many different languages. There is an agreement between WHO and APA which enhances reliability for mental disorders symptoms.
• Strengths of Categorising Mental Disorders

  • helps us to understand our own experiences and feelings more
  • allows others to understand behaviour and demonstrate empathy
  • can receive medical or psychological help
• Rosenhan

  Aim- to prove that psychiatrists can’t reliably tell the difference between the sane and insane

  Method 1- pseudopatients complained to mental ward admissions they were hearing voices saying ‘empty’, ‘thud’ and ‘hollow’. They were then admitted and had to prove to the staff they were sane in order to leave.

  Results- 7/8 were diagnosed with schizophrenia the other with bipolar they remained in hospital for 7 to 52 days and we’re discharged with schizophrenia in remission.
• Rosenhan

  Method 2- a different hospital was told one or more pseudo patients would attempt to be admitted and they had to rate on a 10 point scale how likely each patient was to be the pseudo patient

  Results-of the 193 genuine patients 21% were judged to be a pseudo patient by one member of staff. 10% were rated sane by a psychiatrist and another member of staff.

  Conclusion- the distinction between normal and abnormal is so hazy that even trained professionals make errors in identifying the characteristics of mental illness
• Evaluation of Rosenhan

  • Ethics- deception and no informed consent
  • Socially sensitive- can label hospitals as abusive or label staff as bad at their jobs
  • Ethnocentric- all research conducted in one individualistic culture
  • High ecological validity- took place in real hospitals
  • Quite high reliability of diagnosing disorders
  • Low validity in diagnosing mental illness
  • Useful- can improve treatment of mental patients
  • Not useful- doesn’t give a solution to avoid misdiagnosis
• Affective Disorder- a broad group of illnesses affecting mood. There may be feelings of sadness or irritability or mania and rage.


  Major Depressive disorder- symptoms present in the past 2 consecutive weeks

  • depressed mood for most/ all the day nearly everyday
  • loss of interest in all/ most activities

  -appetite loss or gain

  -fatigue

  -excessive feelings of worthlessness

  -suicidal ideation
• Psychotic Disorder- involves a loss of contact with reality where the individual in psychosis perceives things around them very differently to others.


  Schizophrenia- symptoms present for at least a one month period

  • delusions
  • hallucuniations
  • disorganised speech

  -reduced emotional expression

  -highly disorganised behaviour
• Anxiety Disorder- involves feelings and behaviours characterised by excessive and persistent fear


  Specific Phobia- persistent distress for 6 months or more

  • stimulus provokes immediate fear and anxiety
  • anxiety causes impairment in areas of functioning

  -sweating

  -shaking