Chapter 1: The History of Abnormal Psychology

Question 1

abnormal psychology

Answer 1

subfield of psychology that addresses causes & progression of psychological disorders

Question 2

psychological disorder

Answer 2

pattern of thoughts, feelings, or behaviors that causes significant personal distress, impairment, or risk of harm. (Has to be unusual for context and culture).

Question 3

psychosis

Answer 3

an impaired ability to perceive reality to the extent that normal functioning is difficult or not possible

Question 4

2 types of psychosis?

Answer 4

hallucinations & delusions

Question 5

hallucinations

Answer 5

sensations so vivid that perceived objects or events seem real but aren’t

Question 6

delusions

Answer 6

persistent false beliefs that are held despite evidence that beliefs are incorrect or exaggerate reality

Question 7

culture

Answer 7

shared norms and values of a society that are explicitly and implicitly conveyed to its members by example & through use of reward & punishment

Question 8

asylums

Answer 8

institutions to house and care for people who are afflicted with mental illness

Question 9

moral treatment

Answer 9

treatment of the mentally ill that involved providing an environment in which people with mental illness were treated with kindness and respect and functioned as part of community

Question 10

Freud

Answer 10

psychoanalytic theory, id, ego, superego, psychosexual stages, defense mechanisms

Question 11

psychoanalytic theory

Answer 11

the theory that thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are a result of conscious and unconscious forces continually interacting in the mind

Question 12

id

Answer 12

(Freud) the seat of sexual and aggressive drivers, as well as of the desire for immediate gratification of physical & psychological needs

Question 13

superego

Answer 13

(Freud) seat of the conscience, which works to impose morality

Question 14

ego

Answer 14

(Freud) psychic structure that is charged with mediating between the id’s demands for immediate gratification & the superego’s high standards of morality, as well as constraints of external reality

Question 15

psychosexual stages

Answer 15

(Freud) sequence of 5 stages of development through which children proceed from infancy to adulthood; each stage has task that must be completed for healthy psychological development

Question 16

Freud’s 5 psychosexual stages

Answer 16

1. oral
2. anal
3. phallic
4. latency
5. genital

Question 17

neurosis

Answer 17

(psychoanalytic theory) pattern of thoughts, feelings, or behaviors that expresses an unresolved conflict between ego & id or between ego & superego

Question 18

defense mechanisms

Answer 18

unconscious processes that work to transform psychological conflict in order to prevent unacceptable thoughts and feelings from reaching consciousness

Question 19

repression

Answer 19

(defense mechanism) unintentionally keeping conflict-inducing thoughts or feelings out of conscious awareness

Question 20

denial

Answer 20

(defense mechanism) not acknowledging the conflict-inducing thoughts or feelings to oneself (and others)

Question 21

rationalization

Answer 21

(defense mechanism) justifying the conflict-inducing thoughts, feelings, or behaviors with explanations

Question 22

projection

Answer 22

(defense mechanism) projecting conflict-inducing thoughts or feelings onto others

Question 23

reaction formation

Answer 23

(defense mechanism) transforming the conflict-inducing thoughts or feelings into their opposite

Question 24

sublimation

Answer 24

(defense mechanism) channeling the conflict-inducing thoughts or feelings into less-threatening behaviors

Question 25

psychodynamic theory

Answer 25

psychoanalytic theory but evolved and more modern (though generally still considered not that empirically supported)

Question 26

mental processes

Answer 26

internal operations that underlie cognitive and emotional functions (such as perception, memory, and guilt feelings) and most human behavior

Question 27

mental contents

Answer 27

specific material that is stored in the mind and operated on by mental processes

Question 28

humanistic psychology

Answer 28

Maslow; focuses on free will, innate goodness, creativity, and the self

Question 29

incongruence

Answer 29

Carl Rogers: incongruence between the ideal self and the real self

Question 30

behaviorism

Answer 30

focuses on understanding directly observable behaviors rather than unobservable mental processes and mental contents

Question 31

Pavlov’s dogs

Answer 31

behavior can evolve from learning!

Question 32

cognitive psychology

Answer 32

thinking of brain like a computer; treatments involving restructuring people’s faulty beliefs and irrational thoughts that led to psychological disorders

Question 33

4 types of attachment style

Answer 33

1. secure
2. resistant / anxious
3. avoidant
4. disorganized

Question 34

secure attachment

Answer 34

become upset when mother leaves but calm down when she returns

Question 35

resistant / anxious attachment

Answer 35

become angry when mother leaves & remain angry upon her return

Question 36

avoidant attachment

Answer 36

no change in emotion based on mother’s presence or absence

Question 37

disorganized attachment

Answer 37

combination of resistant and avoidant styles & also appear confused or fearful with mother

Question 38

diathesis-stress model

Answer 38

a psychological disorder is triggered when a person with a predisposition (diathesis) for the particular disorder experiences an environmental event that causes significant stress

Question 39

biopsychosocial approach

Answer 39

view that a psychological disorder arises from the combined influences of three types of factors: biological, psychological, and social

Question 40

neuropsychological approach

Answer 40

view that a psychological disorder arises from the combined influences of neurological, psychological, and social factors (which affect and are affected by one another through feedback loops)