Chapter 12 Flashcards
Psychopathology
The study of abnormal behavior
Normal behavior
Behavior that frequently occurs
Abnormal behavior
Behavior that is rare and hardly ever occurs
Situational context
The social or environmental setting of a person’s behavior
Subjective discomfort
Emotional distress or pain
Maladaptive
anything that does not allow a person to function within or adapt to the stresses and everyday demands of life.
Psychological disorder
any pattern of behavior that causes people significant distress, causes them to harm others, or harms their ability to function in daily life.
Biological model
model of explaining behavior as caused by biological changes in the chemical, structural, or genetic systems of the body.
Cognitive psychologists
psychologists who study the way people think, remember, and mentally organize information.
Sociocultural perspective
perspective that focuses on the relationship between social behavior and culture.
Cultural relativity
the need to consider the unique characteristics of the culture in which behavior takes place.
Cultural syndromes
sets of particular symptoms of distress found in particular cultures, which may or may not be recognized as an illness within the culture.
Biopsychosocial model
perspective in which abnormal behavior is seen as the result of the combined and interacting forces of biological, psychological, social, and cultural influences.
Anxiety disorders
disorders in which the main symptom is excessive or unrealistic anxiety and fearfulness.
Free-floating anxiety
anxiety that is unrelated to any realistic, known source.
Phobia
an irrational, persistent fear of an object, situation, or social activity.
Social anxiety disorder (social phobia)
fear of interacting with others or being in social situations that might lead to a negative evaluation.
Specific Phobia
fear of objects or specific situations or events.
Claustrophobia
fear of being in a small, enclosed space.
Acrophobia
Fear of heights
Agoraphobia
fear of being in a place or situation from which escape is difficult or impossible.