Psychopathology Flashcards
(47 cards)
What is statistical infrequency?
Mathematical approach that quantifies behaviour. Aims to find a mean avg of behaviour amongst the population eg Using IQ as a measure of intelligence. How often we come across behaviour. The difference between normal and abnormal becomes a quantity.
Evaluation of statistical infrequency
+real world applications
clinical practise where diagnosing eg Schizophrenia 1%
Useful for clinicians
-Ignored cultural factors.
Infrequent may be frequent in another culture. Genital retraction koro syndrome common in southern china. Culturally relative.
-Some statistically abnormal behaviours are desirable. IQ 150.
Normal undesirable behaviours eg depression.
Unable to distinguish between undesirable and desirable.
Deviation from social norms
A behavior does not fit within what is socially acceptable. Dependent on the culture in which the behavior occurs eg homosexuality. Context (eccentric) and degree of behavior need to be considered.
Evaluation of Deviation of social norms
- Culturally relative. Behavior only makes sense when viewed within the originating culture. eg homosexuality. There are no universal rules for labelling behaviors as abnormal.
-Social norms change within time eg homosexuality. Definition is limited.
+Used as a way to identify and get help. If healthy behavior is accepted as the societal norm, a person with a mental disorder has friends that will recognize they are behaving abnormally an seek help. eg depression sleep for 10 hours.
+Flexible in deciding what is normal because dependent on culture, age etc. not rigid and accepts individual differences.
Failure to function adequately
An individual is not able to cope with everyday life eg holding a job down. The global assessment of functioning scale is a method of measuring how well individuals function in everyday life.
Failure to function adequately evaluation
+Represents a good threshold for professional help. In any given year, 25% of us experience symptoms of mental disorder to some degree. Most the time we press on but when we cease to function adequately people seek medical help. Provides a way to target treatment to those who need them the most.
-Based on subjective judgement. Interpretation on whether someone is in distress and not functioning adequately is open to bias. Where is the line drawn? Difficult to decide whether it is a result of abnormality.
Deviation from ideal mental health
Abnormal behaviour should be defined by the absence of particular characteristics. Marie Jahoda suggested there were 6 criteria that needed to be fulfilled for ideal mental health-autonomy (independence), pos attitude towards the self, self- actualization etc.
Evaluation from ideal mental health
-Has extremely high standards. Only a few ppl will attain all criteria so would suggest we are all abnormal and therefore need treatment. May be good as it makes it clear the way in which ppl can benefit from seeking help to improve their mental health. May only be helpful to some.
- Cultural bound as based on Jahodas views of psychological health (western) ie self actualisation would be self indulgent in collectivist cultures. Applying ideas to members of non western cultures would be inappropriate.
What are phobias?
An irrational extreme fear of an object, place or situation that causes a constant avoidance of said object, place or situation. Interferes with your everyday.
Behavioural characteristics of phobias
Panic- Crying, screaming or u may freeze
Avoidance
Endurance
Emotional characteristics of phobias
Anxiety
Fear
Emotional response is unreasonable
Cognitive characteristics of phobias
Selective attention to the phobic stimulus
Irrational beliefs
Cognitive distortions
How does the DSM recognise phobias?
Specific phobias- phobia of an object
Social anxiety- phobia of a social situation
Agoraphobia- fear of being outside or in a public space
Mowrer- The two process model
We acquire phobias through classical conditioning and we continue to maintain this phobia because of operant conditioning.
Discrimination
If the phobia is specific to a specific type of an object
Generalisation
If the phobia is for all types of the object
Watson and Rayner- Little Albert
Created a phobia in a 9 month year old baby. He showed no unusual anxiety at the start. When a rat was presented they made a loud noise by clanging an iron bar close to Albert’s ear. The noise is an UCS which creates a UCR of fear. When the rat (NS) and the UCS are encountered together the NS becomes associated with the UCS and produce fear. The rat is now the CS that produces a CR. Conditioning then generalised to similar objects.
Positive reinforcement
Being rewarded for the fear which strengthens it
Negative reinforcement
Strengthens fear as individual will avoid what they are afraid of
Evaluation of the two process model
+ Real life application- development of treatment. Classical conditioning has led to treatments such as systematic desensitisation where u learn to pair relaxation with the phobic object. Capafons et al found systematic desensitisation was successful in overcoming a fear of flying and the conditioned response was relaxation. Shows how phobias are acquired and can be reversed to cure the phobia.
-Not all phobias are formed from a negative experience. Some common phobias such as snakes occur in a population where few people have experiences of snakes. Not all frightening experiences cause phobias eg you may be bitten by a dog but still love them. Not a complete explanation of phobias such as evolution where we model behaviour on objects.
+Little Albert as evidence which gives theory credibility as we objectively see how phobias are acquired through conditioning.
+
Systematic desensitisation
Relies on classical conditioning to help someone get rid of a phobia . Eg if someone has a spider phobia there is systematic movement from a pic of a spider (weak stimulus) to a live spider (strong stimulus) to help cure the phobia- anxiety hierarchy.
Desensitisation part is where a person learns to relax their muscles as part of the therapy and they relax each time a move is made up the hierarchy of phobic objects and learn to replace fear response with relaxation response- Reciprocal Inhibition. Slowly exposed and step by step process.
Evaluation of systematic desensitisation
+ Cost effective method due to using virtual reality in sessions. For example if you have a phobia of heights. Less sessions may be needed as you can tackle the issue quickly and safely. More ppl can be treated which helps society.
-Doesn’t work for everybody. If the patient cannot relax to move on to the next stage the treatment will not be successful. Eg someone with a fear of spiders may not be able to move past spiders being in a jar even with the help of relaxants and the treatment relies on people being able to relax. May not be effective
Flooding
Where you are given full immediate exposure of your feared object without a gradual process. When you’re scared, your body increases heart rate, blood pressure and adrenalin. Body is in alarm stage. Body can’t last this way and will calm down and phobia should have disappeared as body is too exhausted to respond.
What does both systematic desensitisation and flooding use?
In vivo (actual exposure) and in vitro (imaginary exposure) VR
