Psychopathology Flashcards

Question

Evaluate Beck

Answer 1

Good Supporting Evidence- Joseph Cohen et al. tracked the development of 473 adolescents and measuring their cognitive vulnerability and found that showing vulnerability predicted later depression which shows that there is an association with cognitive vulnerability and depression. Real-World Applications- It is used as screeing and treatment for depression. Cohen et al. shows that assessing the vulnerability of people allows psychologists to screen young people who are developing depression. This can also be applied in CBT that works by altering the kind of cognitions that make people venerable to depression. This means understanding vulnerability is useful in clinical practices. Only offers a partial explanation- Although we can say for certain that people with depression show particular patterns of cognition, some psychologists say that it doesnt explain particular characteristics for example why some people experience extreme anger.

Answer 2

Ellis suggested a different explanation for depression. He said that good mental health is the result of rational thinking, thinking in ways that allow people to be happy and conditions like anxiety and depression are a result of irrational thinking, thoughts that interfere with being happy and feeling no pain. He proposed the ABC model to explain how irrational thoughts affect our emotional behaviour and state: Activating Event- Ellis focused on situations where irrational thoughts are triggered by alike failing a test or ending a relationship Beliefs- Irrational beliefs, that the event is major disaster whenever something doesnt go smoothly Consequences- When an event triggers an irrational belief, there is emotional and behavioral consequences alike depression

Answer 3

Real-World Application- Ellis’ approach to the cognitive theory is called rational emotive behaviour therapy (REBT) which is where a therapist argues with a person to alter the irrational beliefs and relieve from depression (more in explanations). Only explains reactive depression- not endogenous depression. while depression is often triggered by life events, some causes may be at least partly due to our beliefs like in many cases where a life event isn't traceable. Ellis’ model is less useful at explaining these types. So therefore it is only a partial explanation

Answer 4

The most commonly used psychological treatment for depression and more by breaking the vicious cycle of maladaptive and irrational thinking, feelings and behaviours. It focuses on the here andnow problems insted of focusing on the causes of distress or symptoms in the past. It looks for ways to improbe the state of mind right now and allows the person to do it themselves. Assessment → Formulation, goals → monitoring, homework → treatment complete

Answer 5

Applies Becks theory of depression by directly challenging the negative triad. It also aims to help clients see the reality of their beliefs by setting homework like noting down when someone was nice or they enjoyed an experience. If a client has none, a therapist can produce evidence to show the client is incorrect- reality testing. This replaces a clients irrational beliefs with optimisitc ones

Answer 6

The rational emotive behaviour therapy argues that irrational thoughts are the main cause of all behavioural disorders. It extends the ABC model by adding D- dispute and E- effect. A client will argue with a therapst in order to break the link between negative life events and depression

Answer 7

A phobia is an anxiety disorder where a person has irrational fears that produce a conscious avoidance of the feared object or situation. There are three types: Specific- phobias of a particular object or situation ie. dog or injection Social- Social situations ie. injection Agoraphobia- fear of open spaces

Answer 8

Emotional- unpleasant state of high arousal, cant experience positive emotions Behavioral- panic, crying, screaming, avoidance Cognitive- irrational thought processing

Answer 9

Emphasizes the role of learning gearing toward explaining the characteristics of phobias Mower (1947)- proposed the two-process model which states phobias are acquired by classical conditioning and then maintained by operant conditioning.

Answer 10

created a phobia in a 9-month-old baby called ‘little Albert’. When Albert was showed a white rat, he tried to play with it. Whenever he was showed the rat, the researders made a loud noise by banging an iron bar near his head. The noise is a US which creates a UR of fear. Then when the rat, NS and the US are shown together, Albert assosiates them two. Now Albert displays fear when around the rat, now a CS, he produces a CR of fear. → This is empirical support for Mower

Answer 11

CRITICISED FOR BEING REDUCTIONIST: The two-process model suggests that complex mental disorders are causes solely by our experience of association, rewards and punishments. This is a problem because the behavioral approach could be seen as too simplistic and ignores other factors like the role of evolution. CRITICISED FOR BEING DETERMINISTIC; The two-process model suggests that when an individual experiences a traumatic event and uses this event to draw an assosiation between a neutral stimulus and unconditioned response. It ignores free will by suggesting we’re only conditioned by environmental experiences REAL-WORLD APPLICATION: The distinctive element of the two-process model is the idea that phobias are maintained by the avoidance og a phobic stimulus. This is important in explaining why exposure to the stimulus is beneficial in curing phobias which is used in exposure therapies. This shows the value of the model as it identifies the means of treating phobias.

Answer 12

SD is a behavioral therapy designed to gradually reduce anxiety through classical conditioning. It aims to reduce the fear response of a phobia and substitute it with a new learnt relaxation response. The learning of a different response is called counterconditioning. It includes: - The Anxiety Hierarchy- a list put together by a client and therapist of situations related to the phobia that provoke anxiety, ordered from least to most frightening. - Relaxation Techniques- deep muscle relaxation and breathing techniques involving reciprocal inhibition, when one response is inhibited as its competing with the other. - Work up heirarchy- practicing the relaxation techniques and work up the heirarchy when they feel comfortable. They are able to return to an earlier stage if upset.

Answer 13

Evidence of Effectivness- Studies for 42 people who had SD for arachnaphobia showed less fear than a control group who were treated with relaxation and not exposure at both 3 and 33 months. this means that SD is likely to be helpful for people with phobias.

Answer 14

Exposes a person to theur feared stimulus without a gradual build up, insted via immediate exposure to a very frightening situation over an extended period. It aims to make the patient learn that the fear is harmless thus leading their phobia into extinction. A learned response is extinguished when the conditioned stimulus is encountered without the unconditioned stimulus resulting in the conditioned stimulus no longer producing the conditioned respose of fear.

Answer 15

Cost-effective- patients are treated quickly and in less sessions than SD meanig it is more cost effective for health providers alike the NHS. This means that more people can be treated at the same cost with flooding than with SD making it a prefered treatment Ethical Issues- Flooding is rarely used due to the fact it can be dangerous if not careful. This is due to the fact its an unpleasant sityation and traumatic for most clients and can lead to further trauma. This makes it not appropriate for many people. It is highly effective for simple phobias, however, less effective for phobias alike agoraphobia. Some psychologists say phobias are due to irrational thinking and not unpleasant situations, therefore, CBT may be more effective.

Psychopathology Flashcards

(40 cards)