3 - Causal Factors & Viewpoints Flashcards
(93 cards)
0
Q
What are proximal and distal causal factors?
A
- proximal: causal factor which operates shortly before occurrence of symptoms of disorder
- distal: causal factors which may not show their effects for many years
1
Q
What are risk factors, and why do many investigators prefer this term to causes?
A
• variables correlated w/ abnormal outcome(s)
• attempting to understand anyone’s life in causal terms is a huge undertaking b/c of the fact that even the simplest action is predicated by thousands of prior events
* understanding causes is still the ultimate goal
2
Q
What is a reinforcing contributory cause?
A
Condition that tends to maintain an existing maladaptive behaviour
• eg attention, sympathy, & relief from unwanted responsibility when ill -> discourage recovery
• eg depressed behaviour ->
alienation -> sense of rejection -> deepened depression
3
Q
When do we use the term “causal pattern”?
A
When there is more than causal factor involved
4
Q
Why is it difficult to distinguish between what is cause & what is effect?
A
Effects can serve as feedback that can in turn influence causes (ie there is often bidirectionality)
5
Q
Describe diasthesis and stress in terms of causal factors.
A
• both can be necessary/contributory; neither is sufficient
- diasthesis = distal
- stress(or) = proximal
6
Q
Name two diasthesis-stress models and describe them.
A
- additive - diasthesis & stress sum together; high diasthesis may need only low stress, low diasthesis may need high stress (someone with no diasthesis can still develop a disorder w/ very high stress
- interactive - some amount of diasthesis must be present for stress to have an effect; higher diasthesis increases likelihood of developing disorder w/ increasing levels of stress
7
Q
What three things are important to remember about protective factors?
A
- not beneficial to people w/o risk factors [not sure I agree with this entirely…]
- not necessarily positive experiences (stressful experiences can have a “steeling” or “inoculation” effect; more likely w/ moderate stressors than mild or extreme ones)
- not always experiences; sometimes qualities or attributes of the person
8
Q
What contributes to resilience?
A
Protective factors, especially fundamental systems of adaptation
• intelligence & cognitive development
• ability to self-regulate
• motivation to achieve mastery
• effective parenting
• well-functioning neurobiological systems for handling stress
9
Q
When do problems tend to arise?
A
- when one or more systems of adaptation are weak to begin with
- when a serious stressor damages one or more of these systems
10
Q
What three things are important to remember about resilience?
A
- not an all-or-none capacity
- resilient people may still experience considerable self-reported emotional distress
- resilience may exist in one domain but not others
11
Q
Why do diasthesis-stress models need to be considered as multicausal developmental models?
A
- in the course of development, a child may acquire a variety of cumulative risk factors that may interact in determining their risk for psychopathology
- may also interact w/ a variety of protective processes, & sometimes w/ stressors, to determine whether the child develops in a normal & adaptive way throughout life
12
Q
What is important to remember about viewpoints for understanding causes of abnormal behaviour?
A
- each helps researchers to organize observations made within a system of thought
- each suggests areas of focus for research
- each is a theoretical construction designed to orient psychologists in the study of abnormal (& normal) behaviour
13
Q
What three shifts in focus of abnormal psychology seem to have been occurring in recent years?
A
- newer, slightly different biological viewpoint having significant impact (especially in psychiatry & clinical science)
- behavioural & cognitive-behavioural viewpoints have become influential w/ empirically-oriented clinical psychologists & some psychiatrists
- sociocultural viewpoint has gained interest
14
Q
Name four categories of biological factors.
A
- neurotransmitter & hormonal abnormalities (in brain or other parts of CNS)
- genetic vulnerabilities
- temperament
- brain dysfunction & neural plasticity
15
Q
What are two important things to remember about biological factors?
A
- they can interact w/ each other
* affect different people differently (play different roles in different people)
16
Q
Name three ways that neurotransmitter imbalances can be created.
A
- excessive production & release of neurotransmitter into synapses
- dysfunction in normal processes* of deactivation of neurotransmitters (*usually reuptake or degradation via enzymes)
- problems w/ receptors in postsynaptic neuron (abnormally sensitive or insensitive)
17
Q
What are the two effects that neurotransmitters can have on the postsynaptic neuron?
A
- to initiate an impulse
* to inhibit impulse transmission
18
Q
What are the two ways neurotransmitters are removed from the synapse?
A
- destroyed by enzymes (eg monoamine oxidase)
* reuptake (reabsorption into axon ending)
19
Q
What effects can medications have on synapses?
A
- block reuptake process
- alter sensitivity of receptor sites
- affecting actions of enzymes that break down neurotransmitters
20
Q
What are the two categories of medications that affect synaptic activity?
A
- agonists - facilitate effects of neurotransmitters on postsynaptic neurons
- antagonists - oppose or inhibit effects of neurotransmitters or postsynaptic neurons
21
Q
What are the five kinds of neurotransmitters that have been studied extensively in relation to psychopathology?
A
• norepinephrine - emergency reactions, attention, orientation, basic motives
• dopamine - pleasure, cognitive processing; schizophrenia, addiction
• serotonin - processing info from environment, behaviour, mood; emotional disorders
• glutamate
• GABA (gamma aminobutyric acid)
** first three are monoamines **
22
Q
What are two types of chemical imbalances?
A
- neurotransmitter imbalance
* hormonal imbalance
23
Q
Explain the three steps involved in the activation of the HPA axis.
A
- Corticotrophin-releasing hormone (CRH) travels from hypothalamus to pituitary
- Pituitary releases adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) -> stimulates cortical part of adrenal gland to produce epinephrine (adrenaline) & cortisol
- Cortisol provides negative feedback to hypothalamus & pituitary to decrease release of CRH & ACTH
24
What disorders have been associated with malfunctioning of the negative feedback in the HPA axis?
* depression
| * PTSD
25
What other endocrine system gland can contribute to maladaptive behaviour?
Gonads (ovaries or testes) - ie imbalances in sex hormones
26
To what extent do genetic factors influence behaviour and mental disorders?
* not exclusive determinant of either
| * most mental disorders show at least some genetic influence
27
When do genetic sources of vulnerability manifest?
* some in infancy
| * some not until adolescence or adulthood (when most mental disorders appear for the first time)
28
What is important to remember about genetic vulnerability to mental disorders?
* almost always polygenic; usually the person has inherited a large number of polymorphisms of genes that work together (in an additive or interactive fashion) to increase vulnerability
* genes relating to mental disorder & behaviour rarely express in a straightforward manner b/c behaviour results from organism's interaction w/ the environment (ie genes only act indirectly)
29
What are three important ways in which an individual's genotype can shape their environment?
* passive effect - genetic similarities of parents to children; parents create environments which will interact with the child's genome
* evocative effect - eliciting reactions from social & physical environment
* active effect - gives inclination to seek out or build an environment that is congenial (aka "niche building")
30
Name two examples of how environment can affect phenotype through susceptibilities in genotype.
* phenylalanine sensitivity causing mental retardation in some children
* major life stressors (4+) correlating w/ depression 2x as often in one genetic variation over another
31
What three primary methods have been traditionally used in behaviour genetics?
* family history (pedigree) method
* twin method
* adoption method
32
Give two terms used for an individual who possesses a trait or disorder of interest.
* proband
| * index case
33
What is the main limitation of the family history method?
People who are more closely related genetically also tend to share more similar environments
34
Why can we safely conclude that no mental disorders are completely heritable?
Because no forms of psychopathology in the DSM have high (near 100%) concordance rate
35
What is one counter argument to the idea that differences in concordance rates among monozygotic & dizygotic twins indicates genetic contribution?
Possible that parents and others treat identical twins more similarly than fraternal twins (for this reason, it is ideal for identical twins being studied to have been raised in different environments)
36
Describe two variations of the adoption method.
* comparing biological parents of adopted individuals w/ disorder to the biological parents of those w/o the disorder
* comparing offspring of individuals w/ & w/o a disorder who have given their children up for adoption
37
Name five misconceptions that arise from people neglecting to see that "nature" and "nurture" are interactive (instead believing that they are separate).
* strong genetic effects mean that environmental influences must be unimportant
* genes provide a limit to potential
* genetic strategies are of no value for studying environmental influences
* genetic effects diminish w/ age
* disorders that run in families must be genetic, & those that don't must not be genetic
38
Name two more recent molecular genetic methods. Which is more promising, and what is a major limitation of both?
• linkage analysis
• association studies
- more promising
* neither yield results that can be replicated yet
39
Which environmental influences appear to be more important in influencing behaviour and adjustment?
Nonshared environmental influences
40
What five dimensions of temperament can be identified as of 2-3 months of age?
```
• fearfulness
• irritability & frustration
• positive affect
• activity level
• attentional persistence & effortful control
* some emerge later than others
```
41
What are three important dimensions of adult personality?
| What dimensions of temperament correspond to each?
```
• neuroticism (negative emotionality)
- fearfulness
- irritability
• extraversion (positive emotionality)
- positive affect
- activity level (possibly)
• constraint (conscientiousness & agreeableness)
- attentional persistence & effortful control
```
42
Give examples of how the temperament of an infant or young child can affect developmental processes.
* fearful child has many opportunities for classical conditioning of fear for situations in which fear is evoked; may later learn to avoid such situations (especially social situations)
* high levels of positive affect & activity are more likely to show high levels of mastery motivation (inverse for those with high levels of fear & sadness)
* high levels of negative emotionality = harder to parent (lower socioeconomic status families less supportive of these children that mid or high socioeconomic status families)
43
Give examples of how temperament can set the stage for developing psychopathology later in life.
• fearful & hypervigilant in novel situations ("behaviourally inhibited")
-> anxiety disorders
• "uninhibited" children may struggle to learn moral standards for behaviour -> show more aggressive & delinquent behaviour at age 13; if combined with hostility -> conduct disorder & antisocial personality disorder
44
What is neural plasticity?
Flexibility of the brain in making changes in organization & function in response to prenatal & postnatal experiences, stress, diet, disease, drugs, maturation, etc.
- existing circuits can be modified
- new pathways can be generated
45
Give an example each for positive and negative effects of prenatal experiences.
+ rats w/ mothers in complex, enriched environments were less negatively affected by brain injury that occurred early in development
- monkeys w/ mothers exposed to loud, unpredictable sounds were jittery & showed neurochemical abnormalities (elevated levels of circulating catecholamines)
46
Explain two misconceptions people have about biological influences.
* established biological differences between individuals with and without a disorder does not actually substantiate the disorder as an illness; biological foundations exist for all behaviour traits (like introversion/extraversion)
* dysfunction in the nervous system could actually result from psychological causes as well as biological ones b/c psychological events are mediated through activities of CNS (all beliefs, emotions, & cognitions are ultimately reducible to set of biological events in brain)
47
What are the three perspectives on human nature that have been particularly influential, and what do they have in common?
```
• psychodynamic
• behavioural
• cognitive-behavioural
All emphasize
- early experience
- awareness of psychological processes in an individual
- influences of social factors
```
48
Describe the structure of personality as viewed in psychoanalytic theory.
```
• id:
- source of instinctual drives
~ life instincts (libido)
~ death instincts (aggression)
- operates on pleasure principle
- engages in primary process thinking
• ego:
- mediates between demands of id, realities of external world, & moral constraints of superego
~ often called executive branch of personality for this reason
- employs secondary process thinking
- operates on reality principle
• superego:
- outgrowth of internalizing taboos & moral values of society (conscience)
- deals with uninhibited desires of id
```
49
In psychoanalytic theory, what leads to mental disorder?
Unresolved intrapsychic conflicts
50
What are the defence mechanisms employed by the ego to deal with neurotic and moral anxiety, and why does it need to use these?
```
• fixation - arresting emotional dev.
• regression - reverting to earlier stage
• repression
• rationalization - contrived expl.
• reaction formation - overcompensate
• projection
• displacement - coming out sideways
• sublimation
* used when rational measures fail
```
51
What are the psychosexual stages of development in psychoanalytic theory?
1. Oral stage: 0-2 yrs
2. Anal stage: 2-3 yrs
3. Phallic stage: 3-5/6 yrs (autoerotic)
4. Latency period: 6-12 yrs
5. Genital stage: after puberty (sexual relations with others)
* gratification at each stage essential in preventing fixation at that stage
52
Who developed ego psychology and why? In this view, when does psychopathology develop?
* Anna Freud
* her father focused on id and superego; she focused on role of ego
* psychopathology develops when ego does not function adequately to control/delay impulse gratification or doesn't make adequate use of defends mechanisms when faced with internal conflicts
53
Name some of the theorists who developed object-relations theory, and outline what the variations of it share.
• Melanie Klein
• Margaret Mahler
• W. R. D. Fairburn
• D. W. Winnicott
- focus on interactions with/between real & imagined other people (external & internal objects)
- introjection of important people into personality through images & memories
- internalized objects can have many conflicting properties & can split off from central ego, giving rise to inner conflicts (eg borderline personality)
54
Who began the interpersonal perspective, and what are its main tenets?
• Alfred Adler (studied under Freud)
- we are a product of our relationships with others
- psychopathology rooted in unfortunate tendencies developed while dealing with interpersonal environments
- inherently social beings, we're motivated primarily by desire to belong to & participate in a group
55
Name two other theorists who expanded on the interpersonal aspects of psychodynamic theory and briefly outline their theories.
• Erich Fromm:
- orientations/dispositions adopted from interactions with others
- maladaptive orientations formed bases of psychopathology
* Karen Horney independently developed similar view; took contention with Freud's view of women
• Erik Erikson:
- elaborated psychosexual stages into more socially oriented concepts
- described crises/conflicts arising in each stage (each being resolved in either healthy or unhealthy ways)
56
Who developed attachment theory and what did they focus on?
• John Bowlby
- importance of early experience (especially with attachment relationships) in laying foundation for later functioning
- importance of quality of parental care in development of secure attachments
- sees infant as being more active in shaping course of own development than previous theorists
57
What are two noteworthy contributions of Freud to our thinking of human nature and behaviour?
1. Developed therapeutic techniques for becoming acquainted with both conscious & unconscious aspects of mental life
• extent to which unconscious motives & defence mechanisms affect behaviour
• importance of early childhood experiences in development of both normal & abnormal personality
• importance of sexual factors in human behaviour & mental disorders
2. Demonstrated that certain abnormal mental phenomena occur in the attempt to cope with difficult problems & are simply exaggerations of normal ego-defence mechanisms
* dissipated much fear & mystery around mental disorders
58
What are two important criticisms of traditional psychoanalytic theory?
• fails to recognize scientific limits of personal reports of experience as primary mode of obtaining information
• lack of scientific evidence to support many of its explanatory assumptions or the effectiveness of psychoanalysis
* also criticized for:
- overemphasis of sex drive
- demeaning view of women
- exaggerating role of unconscious processes
- pessimism about basic human nature
- failing to consider motives toward personal growth & fulfillment
59
What are three things newer psychodynamic theorists have contributed?
* improved scientific efforts to measure concepts (eg core, unconscious conflict relationships)
* bettered understanding of how psychodynamic therapy works (as well as documenting effectiveness for certain problems)
* attachment theory has generated much research supporting basic tenets about normal & abnormal child development & adult psychopathology
60
What has the interpersonal perspective done to establish its scientific validity?
* developing a system of diagnosis based on interpersonal perspective - believe it will improve the reliability and validity of psychological diagnoses
* documenting that interpersonal psychotherapy for certain disorders can be as effective (or nearly) as cognitive-behavioural treatment (which is the standard currently in the disorders in question, eg depression, bulimia, certain personality disorders)
61
What is the humanistic perspective? Who is the person most strongly associated with it, and what were three of his basic propositions?
• sees human nature as basically good • emphasizes inherent capacity for self-direction
• concerned with processes like love, hope, creativity, values, meaning, personal growth, & self-fulfillment
• importance of individuality
• sees psychopathology as blocking or distortion of personal growth & natural tendency toward health
• Carl Rogers
- each individual exists in a private world of experience with "I", "me", or "self" at the center
- most basic striving is toward maintenance, enhancement, & actualization of self; inner tendencies are towards health & wholeness under normal conditions
- perceived threat to self is followed by a defence, including tightening of perception & behaviour as well as introduction of self-defence mechanisms
62
What is the existential perspective, and what are the three basic themes of existentialism?
• emphasizes uniqueness of individual
• focuses on quest for value & meaning
• stresses freedom for self-direction & self-fulfillment
• emphasizes irrational tendencies & difficulties inherent in self-fulfillment
• interested in inner experiences in attempts to deal with & understand deepest human problems
• views abnormal behaviour as failure to deal constructively with existential despair & frustration
- existence & essence: existence is a given; essence is created by our choices (which reflect the values on which we base and order our lives)
- meaning & value: will-to-meaning is basic human tendency to find satisfying values & guide one's life by them
- existential anxiety & encounter with nothingness: nonbeing (ultimately death) is inescapable fate of all; awareness of this can lead to deep concern about whether we are living meaningful & fulfilling lives
63
Name four people associated with behaviourism.
```
• Pavlov (classical conditioning)
• Thorndike (instrumental conditioning*)
• Watson (promoted w/ book)
• Skinner (operant conditioning*)
* these are the same
```
64
Why is classical conditioning important in abnormal psychology?
Many physiological & emotional responses can be conditioned, including those related to fear, anxiety, sexual arousal, or drug abuse (helps look at sources of abnormal behaviour in terms of how one was conditioned)
65
When is instrumental response especially persistent?
When reinforcement is intermittent [ie inconsistent/unpredictable]
66
Why are conditioned avoidance responses especially resistant to extinction?
The avoidance behaviour results in negative reinforcement [ie the behaviour reinforces itself] & prevents person from having experiences with the feared situation which could help extinguish it
* play a role in many patterns of abnormal behaviour
67
What two complementary processes occur during both types of conditioning? Why are they important in abnormal psychology?
• generalization & discrimination
• can make inappropriate generalizations or fail to discriminate appropriately [kind of the same process, really] -> inappropriate & maladaptive behaviour
- eg bigoted person basing interactions on stereotypes
68
What was Bandura's experiment, and what did it demonstrate?
• children watching models being reinforced for aggressive behaviour toward Bobo doll
- acted aggressively toward Bobo doll despite never having been directly reinforced
• demonstrated possibilities for observational learning as observational conditioning
69
How is maladaptive behaviour viewed in behaviourism?
Result of
• failure to learn necessary adaptive behaviours
AND/OR
• learning ineffective or maladaptive responses
70
What is the difference between assimilation and accommodation? Which one do we use more and why?
• assimilation = working new experiences into existing schema(s), even if it means distorting or reinterpreting them
• accommodation = changing existing schema(s) to incorporate new information that doesn't fit
- we use assimilation more because accommodation is more difficult and threatening (especially when important assumptions are challenged)
71
Who adapted the concept of schema from cognitive psychology? How is psychopathology explained from this lens?
* Aaron Beck
* different forms of psychopathology are characterized by different maladaptive schemas (developed as a function of adverse early learning experiences) which lead to distortions in thinking
72
What has been illuminated by research into patterns of distorted information processing?
• depressed individuals show memory biases favouring negative information over neutral or positive information (likely help reinforce/maintain depressed state)
• nonconscious processing
- eg anxious individuals have attention drawn to threatening information even when it's presented subliminally
- implicit memory (demonstrating recollection of something even though it can't be recalled consciously)
73
What is an attributional style?
A characteristic way in which an individual tends to assign causes to events
74
What is a self-serving bias, and who usually has it?
* more likely to make internal, stable, and global attributions for positive rather than negative events
* usually occurs in nondepressed people
75
What is fundamental to Beck's perspective?
* the way we interpret events and experiences determines how we react to them emotionally
* cognitive therapy seeks to address these interpretations; addresses complaints directly (unlike psychoanalysis)
76
What has diminished the criticisms of traditional behaviourists regarding the cognitive-behavioural perspective?
• evidence of the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioural therapy in treating myriad disorders
77
What does the adoption of a perspective accomplish? What can it not accomplish?
```
+ influences
• perception of maladaptive behaviour
• type of evidence we look for
• how we interpret data
- no one view can account for complex variety of human maladaptive behaviours
```
78
Name four categories of psychological causal factors which can have important detrimental effects on a child's socioemotional development.
* early deprivation or trauma
* inadequate parenting styles
* marital discord or divorce
* maladaptive peer relationships
79
Outline the viewpoints of four theorists on parental deprivation.
* Freud: results in fixation at oral stage of development
* Erikson: interferes with development of basic trust
* Skinner: inhibits attainment of needed skills because of lack of reinforcement
* Beck: causes development of dysfunctional schemas & self-schemas in regards to relationships
80
Why does institutionalization (in orphanages) result in severe problems? What are some of these problems?
• less warmth & physical contact
• less intellectual, emotional, & social stimulation
• lack of encouragement/help in positive learning
- severe emotional, behavioural, & learning problems
- disturbed attachment relationships
- psychopathology
81
What two elements appear to contribute most to detrimental effects suffered by children in institutions?
* how early the child was institutionalized (younger >> more severe detriment)
* how long the child was institutionalized (longer >> more severe detriment)
82
Name three ways a parent can neglect a child and three ways they can abuse a child.
```
• physical neglect
• denial of love & affection
• lack of interest in activities & achievements
• failure to spend time with them or supervise their activities
Physical abuse may be:
- emotional
- physical
- sexual
* partial or complete
* overt or subtle
* passive or active
```
83
What are some of the negative effects associated with outright abuse (physical, sexual, or both)?
```
• emotional development
- overly aggressive (physically &
verbally)
- conduct disorder
- depression & anxiety
• intellectual development
• physical development
- nervous system
• lower levels of education, employment, & earnings
• atypical attachment patterns
• expect similar treatment from others
• avoidance [conditioned avoidance response]
• inter generational transmission of abuse (~30% chance)
```
84
Name three protective factors that can help mitigate the effects of abuse or neglect.
* good relationship with some adult during childhood
* higher IQ
* positive school experiences
* physical attractiveness
85
What can happen to children who experience a number of prolonged separations?
Development of an insecure attachment
86
What do all the psychological viewpoints on causes of psychopathology focus on?
Behavioural tendencies children acquire in course of early social interactions (especially with parents or caregivers)
87
Illustrate the bidirectionality of parent-child relationships.
* parents of babies prone to negative moods find it difficult & stressful to deal with them
* parents tend to react with irritability, hostility, & criticism to children with high negative mood & low adaptability (may in turn put children at risk of psychopathology because they become a "focus of discord" in the family)
88
What effect does parental psychopathology have on children?
• heightened risk for developmental difficulties and psychopathology
• research has focused on mothers, but fathers & minimally involved caretakers can also make significant contributions to child & adolescent psychopathology (especially to problems like depression, conduct disorder, delinquency, & ADD)
• genetic component cannot account for all adverse effects
• depressed mothers:
- unskillful parenting (intrusive or withdrawn behaviour, ineffective in managing & disciplining children)
- children more likely to
~ develop depression & other
disorders
~ have insecure attachment
relationships
~ live in environments with high
levels of stress
89
How has the perception of discipline changed?
* formerly conceived as a method of punishing undesirable behaviour & preventing/deterring such behaviour
* now seen as providing needed structure & guidance for promoting a child's healthy growth
90
What is important for parents to do when punishment is deemed necessary?
* make clear exactly what behaviour is inappropriate & what behaviour is expected
* use positive & consistent methods of dealing with infractions
91
What four types of parenting styles have been identified that seem related to different developmental outcomes for children? Briefly describe each.
* authoritative - high warmth, moderate control; careful to set clear limits & restrictions regarding certain kinds of behaviours
* authoritarian - low warmth, high control; often cold & demanding
* permissive/indulgent - high warmth, low control & discipline
* neglectful/uninvolved - low warmth, low control; disengaged & unsupportive
92
Explain the two dimensions that distinguish the four parenting styles.
* parental warmth = amount of support, encouragement, & affection vs shame, rejection, & hostility
* parental control = amount of discipline & monitoring vs leaving largely unsupervised; includes both behavioural control (rewards & punishments) & psychological control (expression of approval/disapproval, guilt induction)
