Lecture 1-2-3 Flashcards
What does it mean that mental disorders are taxonic in nature?
It means they are viewed as distinct categories (rather than existing on a continuum)
Thomas Sydenham classified diseases into distinct categories, believing they were real entities with identifiable symptoms.
What are the two parts of Wakefields harmful dysfunction model?
Dysfunction (when you are performing contrary to the norm) + Harm (The dysfunction must cause harm to the individual)
What is Lilienfeld’s critique of Wakefield’s Harmful Dysfunction model
He argued that mental disorders are complex and socially influenced—not just failures of biological mechanisms. He suggested a more flexible approach
Thomas Widiger offered a refinement to the discussion on defining mental disorders, what did he say
Widiger aligns with the idea that mental disorders are complex constructs that can’t be easily defined or directly observed. They are measured through indirect means and understood within a broader context of multiple influences. His dimensional approach encourages looking at these constructs as varying along a continuum rather than as fixed categories.
What does DSM stand for?
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders
Robins & Guze criteria for the valid classification of mental disorders. They proposed five criteria to ensure that mental disorders are classified in a reliable and meaningful way.
- Clinical Description ( a common set of symptoms that cluster together)
- Course (People with the disorder should follow a common trajectory and have a similar onset of symptoms)
- Treatment Response (TIf a disorder is valid, most people with the disorder should respond similarly to similar treatments)
- Family History (The disorder should show a genetic or familial pattern, meaning it runs in families)
- Laboratory Studies (Biological and psychophysiological evidence should support the disorder’s validity)
In the context of mental health classification, what does the term Procrustean bed refer to?
It is used metaphorically to critique systems that attempt to force diverse human experiences and complex symptoms into predefined, rigid categories
Categorical Classification vs Dimensional Classification
In a categorical system, disorders are classified into distinct categories or types. Each mental disorder is either present or absent, meaning that an individual either has a disorder or does not meet the criteria for it.
In a dimensional system, mental health is viewed as existing along a spectrum or continuum. Instead of categorizing disorders as either present or absent, individuals are assessed on various dimensions or traits, such as severity, frequency, or intensity of symptoms.
When was the first version of the DSM introduced?
1952
What were the assumptions introduced in the DSM III?
- Symptoms are the most useful basis for assessment
- Locus of pathology is in the individual: meaning it’s the person not the context/system. A lot of people were mad about this.
What is one of the main reason why comorbidity exists?
Many criterion sets overlap
prevalence vs incidence?
prevalence: percentage of people in the population with a disorder at a particular point in time
incidence: percentage of people who develop a disorder for the first time during a specific period of time
lifetime prevalence of disorders of mood disorders vs anxiety disorders vs substance use disorders vs any disorder
mood disorder: 21%
anxiety disorder: 27%
substance use disorders: 15%
any disorder: 46%
true or false: 46% of population will fit criterias for psychological disorders at some point in lifetime.
true
what represent the letters in the ACE model in twin studies?
A: genetic influence
C: shared-environment influence
E: non-shared environment influence
What does genotype refer to?
A person’s genetic makeup. the specific DNA sequence they inherit
What does phenotype refer to?
the observable characteristics of an individual, which result from both genetic and environmental influences
What are endophenotypes?
an intermediate step between the microscopic level of genes and brain cells and the complex, observable level of behavior and experience (phenotype)
Schizophrenia is a complex phenotype, meaning it is difficult to define and influenced by many factors. However, researchers have identified endophenotypes (Deficits in working memory, abnormal eye tracking) that might help explain how genetic risk translates into the disorder.
