Psychological disorders

Question 1

Psychopathology literally translates to

Answer 1

‘sickness of the mind’ but more formally refers to patterns of thought, feeling or behaviour that significantly disrupt personal, social (family and friends) and occupational functioning and cause significant distress to the person and significant others

Question 2

According to Thomas Szasz (1974), psychopathology is a

Answer 2

myth

Question 3

‘mental illness’ is a

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socially constructed and stigmatic label to punish people when they do not conform to social or cultural norms; thus, it is on cultural norms that we distinguish ‘normal’ from ‘abnormal’ behaviour.

Question 4

Two limitations of the assertion that ‘mental illness is not real’ is that

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(i) the symptoms of many mental disorders are recognised cross-culturally (i.e. they are not just socially constructed because they are independent of cultural factors), and (ii) the disruption to a person’s well being is significant enough to warrant differentiating normal from abnormal behaviour and for creating ‘categories’ or types of mental illnesses.

Question 5

mental disorder’ more specifically refers to a

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clinically recognisable set of symptoms and behaviors that usually need treatments to be alleviated; also, mental disorders are simply ‘mental health problems’ at more intense levels

Question 6

Mental health problems refer to the

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normal and wide range of emotional and behavioral abnormalities that affect almost all people at some point throughout their lives, and can include cognitive impairment and disability, phobias, panic attacks, drug-related harm, anxiety, personality disorders, depressive disorders and symptoms of psychoses

Question 7

Mental health refers to a

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state of emotional and social wellbeing where the individual realises their own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and contribute to the community

Question 8

There are five main theoretical approaches to psychopathology:

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(i) psychodynamic, (ii) cognitive-behavioural, (iii) biological, (iv) systems and (v) evolutionary; each of these are best used in complement as they are not mutually exclusive and competing theories

Question 9

neuroses refer to

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normal and everyday problems in living; they occur in almost all people at some point in their life but do not stop people from functioning reasonably well

Question 10

personality disorders

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where a person exhibits more enduring maladaptive patterns of thought, feeling and behaviour that are leading to chronic disturbances in interpersonal relationships and occupational functioning; that is, they have difficulty maintaining meaningful relationships and employment, they interpret interpersonal events in highly distorted ways and are chronically vulnerable to depression and anxiety

Question 11

psychoses refer to

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gross disturbances in mental functioning to the point where there is a loss of touch with reality (e.g. hallucinations and delusions)

Question 12

neuroses and personality disorders stem mostly from

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environmental experiences (esp. traumas experienced in childhood)

Question 13

psychoses stem mostly from

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biological factors with some stressors from environment

Question 14

from the behaviourist point of view, mental disorders develop because

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of associations with a previously neutral stimulus that has become paired with an emotionally arousing one

Question 15

from the point of view of cognitive psychology, there is an

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emphasis on dysfunctional attitudes, beliefs and cognitive processes (e.g. irrational beliefs and maladaptive cognitive processes)

Question 16

In the biological approach,

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mental disorders result from brain dysfunction in specific parts of the brain or in the functioning of neurotransmitters

Question 17

The cognitive-behavioural perspective

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integrates classical and operant conditioning (behaviorism) with theories of social cognition

Question 18

In the systems approach, mental disorders and abnormal behaviour are

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explained in terms of the social context or social system that that individual belongs to

Question 19

According to the evolutionary perspective,symptoms of mental illness have evolved because

Answer 19

they are useful to ensuring the species survives and reproduces, but individuals with extreme levels of these symptoms require therapy

Question 20

according to the ‘diathesis-stress model’, a mental illness occurs under an episode of stress because

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of an underlying vulnerability that is either biological (e.g. genetic predisposition) or environmental (e.g. childhood trauma)

Question 21

One common type of ‘disruptive, impulse-control and conduct disorders’ is

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conduct disorder.

Question 22

Conduct disorder is

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characterised by the persistent violation of societal norms and the rights of others; symptoms include physical aggression toward people and animals, chronic fighting, persistent lying, vandalism, stealing, resent taking direction, lack of empathy and compassion

Question 23

One common type of ‘neurodevelopmental disorder’ is

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attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Question 24

ADHD is

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characterised by inattention, impulsiveness and hyperactivity that is inappropriate for the child’s age;

Question 25

Substance abuse refers to the

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continued use of a substance that negatively affects psychological and social functioning, that can be any substance, e.g. Alcohol, marijuana, cocaine, heroin etc.

Question 26

The most common ‘substance related disorder’ is

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alcoholism

Question 27

Schizophrenia is a

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broad umbrella term for psychotic disorders in which there are disturbances in thought, perception, behavior, language, communication and/or emotion

Question 28

delusions which refer to

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false beliefs that firmly held despite evidence to the contrary e.g. delusions of persecution, grandeur, identity and being controlled

Question 29

hallucinations which refer to

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perceptual experiences that distort, or occur without, external stimulation, e.g. hearing voices

Question 30

positive symptoms signal the

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presence of something not usually there (e.g. delusions, hallucinations)

Question 31

negative symptoms signal the

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absence of a function that is usually there (e.g. appropriate affect, complex thought)

Question 32

Symptoms of schizophrenia can be grouped into

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(i) positive or (ii) negative

Question 33

Mood disorders are characterised

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by significant disruption to emotion or mood. They include depressive and bipolar disorders.

Question 34

major depressive disorder is the

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most severe type of depressive disorder in which there is a significant depressed mood and loss of interest in activities that were once pleasurable (anhedonia)

Question 35

persistent depressive disorder (aka dysthymic disorder) is

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a less severe type of depressive disorder; it is characterised by chronic low-level depression that lasts for more than two years, with some intervals of normal moods, but those intervals don’t last for more than a few weeks or months

Question 36

The most common type of ‘bipolar related disorders’ is,

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bipolar disorder

Question 37

bipolar disorder is

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characterised by significant disruption in emotion (e.g. severe sadness) and mood (e.g. dangerously positive mania)

Question 38

Although anxiety is a normal and useful emotion because it signals potential danger, in anxiety disorders, the anxiety is

Answer 38

intense, frequent and/or continuous; these ‘false alarms’ lead to dysfunctional avoidance behaviour

Question 39

Anxiety disorders are

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one of the most frequently occurring categories of mental disorders (prevalence is about 10%);

Question 40

obsessions refer to

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persistent irrational thoughts or ideas

Question 41

compulsions refer to

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highly stereotyped behaviours or mental acts that are performed in response to an obsession to ward off those obsessive thoughts

Question 42

Personality disorders refer to

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chronic and severe disturbances that substantially inhibit an individual’s capacity to love and work; the prevalence is quite high with estimates of about 10% in the general population

Question 43

[Cluster A] paranoid personalities are

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high on distrust and suspiciousness

Question 44

[Cluster A] schizoid personalities are

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detached from social relationships and have a restricted range of emotional expression

Question 45

[Cluster A] schizotypal personalities display

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acute discomfort in close relationships, cognitive or perceptual distortions and eccentricity

Question 46

[Cluster B] antisocial personalities

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disregard and violate the rights of others

Question 47

[Cluster B] borderline personalities

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are high on impulsivity and instability in their interpersonal relationships, self concept and emotion

Question 48

[Cluster B] histrionic personalities have

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excessive emotionality and attention seeking

Question 49

[Cluster B] narcissistic personalities are

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high on grandiosity, need for admiration and lack empathy

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[Cluster C] avoidant personalities

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exhibit social inhibition and avoidance, feelings of inadequacy and hypersensitivity to negative evaluation

Question 51

[Cluster C] dependent personalities are

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submissive, display clinging behaviour and excessive need to be taken care of

Question 52

[Cluster C] obsessive-compulsive personalities have

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a preoccupation with orderliness, perfectionism and control