CLPS 1700 - Chapter 8 Flashcards
(40 cards)
What is hysteria?
Emotional condition: extreme excitability and bodily symptoms for which there is no medical explanation (331); not a DSM IV TR disorder
What does dissociation mean?
The separation of mental processes, such as perception, memory, self-awareness, that are normally integrated (331)
What’s the difference between mental processes in dissociative disorders as opposed to, say, schizophrenia?
In DD, the mental processes are intact, but not integrated properly. In schizophrenia, the mental processes themselves are corrupted (332)
What are the four main dissociative symptoms?
Amnesia, identity problems, derealization (real world perceived as strange/unreal), and depersonalization (viewing oneself as an observer) (332)
What are the four types of dissociative disorders?
Dissociative amnesia, dissociative fugue, depersonalization disorder, and dissociative identity disorder (334)
What’s the difference between localized and selective amnesia?
In selective, you can remember some parts; in localized, a whole chunk of time is missing, usually the time just prior to a stressful event (334)
How common is dissociative amnesia?
Not very. Little is known. (335)
What’s the issue with the theory that hippocampus damage is what causes dissociative amnesia?
If it were actually that damaged, it would be impossible to retrieve the memories there at all (335)
What role may hormones play in dissociative amnesia?
Adrenal glands producing cortisol for fight-or-flight: excessive cortisol reduces hippocampus size,; but no defining evidence for this yet (336)
What does the dissociation/arousal disruption theory posit?
That traumatic experiences narrow the focus of attention and disorganize cognitive processes, so they can’t integrate normally to preserve/recall the memories (336)
What does neodissociation theory posit?
An “executive monitoring system” doesn’t have access to a certain system’s workings, because some systems can operate outside of the EMS’s scope: memory as an “independent cognitive system” causing an “amnestic barrier” to arise between memory and executive system: cut off, in a sense (336)
What characterizes dissociative fugue?
Sudden, unplanned travel and difficulty remembering the past (337)
What brain area is associated with dissociative fugue?
Frontal lobes, especially right hemisphere: role in retrieval of autobiographical memories (339)
What is the difference between depersonalization disorder and psychotic disorders?
DD patients still recognize reality and may not react emotionally to events (340)
What is a frequent comorbid diagnosis for depersonalization disorder, and why?
Anxiety disorder, because some of the symptoms are the same (numbness, detachedness, faintness) and because panic attacks often feature derealization or depersonalization (340)
What brain function abnormalities are associated with depersonalization disorders?
Temporal lobe: lower activity for visual/auditory recognition Parietal lobe: higher activation for orientation, representing the body (341)
How do depersonalization disorder patients handle emotional regulation?
Better than average, very well: perhaps why they don’t show emotional reactions to the strange situations they perceive (341)
What is another name for dissociative identity disorder?
Multiple personality disorder: two or more alter selves (344)
What is the neurological consensus on the idea that certain alters in DID have no memory of knowledge obtained by other alters?
Not really: brain may still show activation (345)
What brain area plays a role in DID, and how?
Orbital frontal cortex (behind eyes), which regulates many cognitive/emotional processes: if early trauma prevents this area from maturing, then it can’t integrate representations of the self normally (346)
What is the primary psychological factor associated with DID?
Hypnosis, which can even alter brain activity (347)
What are the two dominant models for DID?
Posttraumatic and sociocognitive (the therapists accidentally encourages the formation of alters) (347)
How does one treat dissociative disorder patients?
By reinterpreting symptoms to dissuade patients from avoiding certain situations, by teaching stress-coping skills, and by addressing alters/dissociated memories/identities if needed (349)
What are somatoform disorders?
Characterized by complaints about physical well-being that can’t be entirely explained by a medical condition, substance use, or psychological disorder (353)
