Defining Abnormality

• deviation from social norms

  • strength: minimises harm to others
  • weak: social norms change over time and vary across cultures, so diagnosis may lack reliability
• deviation from ideal mental health

  • strength: enables patients to set clear goals
  • weak: jahoda's six criteria are overly demanding and difficult to measure objectively
• failure to function adequately

  • strength: involves behaviours that are easy to observe, measure and diagnose
  • weakness: people with mental disorders arent always unable to cope with everyday life
• statistical infrequency

  • strength: practical. doctors can easily determine abnormality
  • strength: more objective. relies less on the doctors opinion
  • weak: some mental disorders aren't statistically infrequent, leading to a failure in diagnosing more common mental disorders
  • weak: some statistically infrequent traits may be desirable such as high IQ
• Jahoda's six criteria for ideal mental health

  • positive attitudes towards the self
  • self actualisation
  • autonomy
  • resistance to stress
  • accurate perception of reality
  • environmental mastery