Psychopathology Flashcards
(121 cards)
1
Q
What is psychopathology?
A
the study of psychological disorder
2
Q
what are 10 examples of some psychological disorders?
A
phobias, depression, OCD, ADHD, Autism, Bipolar, Tourette’s, Schizophrenia, bulimia, psychosis
3
Q
What are the 4 definitions of abnormality?
A
1) Statistical deviation
2)Deviation from social norms
3) Failure to function adequately
4) Deviation from ideal mental health
4
Q
what is statistical deviation?
A
when an individual has a less common characteristic, and so their behaviour/characteristic is statistically rare (i.e. abnormal)
5
Q
What is deviation from social norms?
A
it concerns behaviour that is different from the accepted standards of behaviour in a community or society
6
Q
what are ‘residual rules’?
Give examples
A
another term for ‘social rules’ - unwritten rules of a social group
Not singing rugby songs in a chapel, standing in a queue
7
Q
what are some cultural differences of social rules?
A
homosexuality is illegal in around 75 countries, taking shoes off in a house, queuing, eating food with hands
8
Q
What is failure to function adequately?
A
not being able to cope with everyday life, which impacts you and/or other people; the behaviour/ traits/ characteristics that cause are considered abnormal, e.g. depression
9
Q
What are the WHODAS criteria for a disability?
A
- cognition
- mobility
- self-care
- getting along
- life activities
- participation
10
Q
What is deviation from ideal mental health?
A
Abnormality based on the absence of characteristics associated with ideal mental health
11
Q
who initiated the idea of abnormality as deviation from ideal mental health
A
Marie Jahoda (1958)
12
Q
what are the defined 6 characteristics of good mental health that Marie Jahoda (1958) outlined?
A
1) self attitudes: positive self-esteem
2) personal growth: develop their full capabilities
3) integration: being able to cope with stress
4) autonomy: independent
5) accurate perception of reality
6) mastery of environment: functioning relationships
13
Q
What is the DSM? (American)
A
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders - lists around 300 mental disorders and their typical symptoms and guidelines for clinicians to make a diagnosis
14
Q
what is the ICD?
A
International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems
(Psychiatrists use this in the UK)
15
Q
What is a clinical disorder?
A
a condition which affects a person’s daily life over an extended period of time
16
Q
what is depression?
A
a mental disorder characterised by low mood and low energy levels
17
Q
what is major depressive disorder?
A
severe but often short-term depression
18
Q
what is persistent depressive disorder?
A
long-term or recurring depression, including sustained major depression and dysthymia (persistent mild depression)
19
Q
what is disruptive mood dysregulation disorder?
A
childhood temper tantrums
20
Q
what is premenstrual dysphonic disorder?
A
disruption to mood prior to and/or during menstruation
21
Q
what are the emotional characteristics of depression?
A
- lowered mood (feeling worthless and empty)
- anger (can lead to self-harming)
- lowered self-esteem (don’t like / hate themselves)
- feeling sad and miserable
22
Q
what are the behavioural characteristics of depression?
A
- reduced energy and activity levels (can lead to withdrawal from work, education and social-life, in severe cases not even getting out of bed)
- disruption to sleeping/eating patterns (more/less)
- aggression and self-harm
23
Q
what are the cognitive characteristics of depression?
A
- poor concentration (can affect daily and work life)
- attending to and dwelling on the negative(ignoring the happiness)
- absolutist thinking (see an unfortunate event as an absolute disaster)
24
Q
What is Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)?
A
an anxiety disorder where anxiety arises from both obsessions (persistent thoughts) and compulsions (behaviours that are repeated over and over again). Compulsions are a response to obsessions and the person believes the compulsions will reduce anxiety
25
when does OCD typically begin?
in young adult life
26
what are the emotional characteristics of OCD?
- stress
- recognition of behaviour (can cause feelings of embarrassment)
- stronger emotions (common obsessions concern germs which gives rise to feelings of disgust)
27
what are the behavioural characteristics of OCD?
- repetition (compulsions are performed to reduce anxiety, repetitive and unconcealed - affects daily and work life which includes mental acts such as praying or counting)
- necessity (do compulsions or else something bad might happen)
- no obvious connections to what they are designed to neutralise - clearly excessive, some compulsions have no particular obsessions, e.g. avoiding certain objects
28
what are the cognitive characteristics of OCD?
- obsessions (recurring, intrusive thoughts/ impulses - perceived as forbidden/ inappropriate, may be frightening/ embarrassing for person)
- common themes/ ideas/ doubts/ impulses/ images
- recognition (thoughts, impulses, images, etc. are not about everyday problems - seen as uncontrollable - creates anxiety. Person recognises that the obsessions are a product of their own mind, and that they’re unreasonable)
29
what are the criteria for OCD?
- recurrent obsessions and compulsions
- recognition by individual that the compulsions are unreasonable
- person is distressed/ impaired in daily life - is disrupted
30
what are phobias?
a group of mental disorders characterised by high levels of anxiety and excessive fear in a response to a particular stimulus or group of stimuli. The anxiety interferes with normal living
- 3 categories: specific phobias, social phobias, agoraphobia
- phobias are anxiety disorders
31
what are the emotional characteristics of phobias?
- fear/ anxiety (disproportional, excessive and unreasonable, persistent and panic, cued by the presence/ anticipation of the object/ situation, embarrassment of phobia
32
what are the behavioural characteristics of phobias?
- avoidance (panic at object/ stimulus - so do not go near it - affects daily, work and social life)
- endurance (stress response triggered by fight or flight (or ‘freeze’ e.g. faint) - adaptive response
33
what are the cognitive characteristics of phobias?
- irrational thinking (resistance to rational arguments, selective attention, cognitive distortions - misinterpreting stimulus as more dangerous than it is)
-recognising phobia as excessive/ irrational/ unreasonable
34
what is the difference between phobias and other delusional mental illnesses (e.g. schizophrenia)?
With other delusional mental illnesses, the individual is not aware of the unreasonableness of their behaviour
35
what are specific phobias?
fear of a specific object or situation, e.g. arachnophobia, claustrophobia, etc.
36
what are social phobias?
fear of humiliation in public places, e.g. eating in restaurants, using public toilets, etc.
37
what is agoraphobia?
fear of public places, e.g. of shopping malls, crowded streets, etc.
38
Which approach explains phobias?
behaviourist approach
39
What is the behaviourist explanation of phobias?
the Two-Process Model
40
who came up with the Two-Process Model?
Hobart Mower (1960)
41
what is the Two-Process Model based on?
the behavioural approach
42
what is the Two-Process Model?
a theory that explains the two processes that lead to the development of phobias - begin through classical conditioning and are maintained through operant conditioning
43
what is an example of the Two-Process Model?
Little Albert
44
How is the Two-Process Model shown with Little Albert?
Classical conditioning:
Loud noise (UCS) —> frightened (UCR)
Furry animal (NS) + loud noise (UCS) —> frightened (UCR)
Furry animal (CS) —> frightened (CR)
Operant conditioning:
Little Albert avoids furry animals —> reduces anxiety (negative reinforcement)
45
how does negative reinforcement maintain phobias?
the removal/ avoidance of the negative stimuli (i.e. the phobia) reduces anxiety, returning the person back to a neutral emotional state, which reinforces the phobia
46
What are the 2 behavioural therapies used to treat phobias and other anxiety disorders?
- systematic desensitisation
- flooding
47
What is systematic desensitisation?
a client is gradually exposed to to (or imagines) the threatening situation under relaxed conditions until the anxiety is extinguished
48
What is the goal of systematic desensitisation?
to gradually become desensitised to the triggers causing the phobia, and the client ca successfully manage their anxiety in real life
49
How many sessions can systematic desensitisation take?
10 - 12
50
who invented systematic desensitisation?
Joseph Wolpe (1958)
51
what is step 1 of systematic desensitisation?
patient is taught how to relax their muscles completely
- scene visualisation
- muscle relaxation
52
what is step 2 of systematic desensitisation?
therapist and patient imagine scenes, each one causing more anxiety - an anxiety/ desensitisation hierarchy
E.g. spiders:
Think about spider (fear rating 10), look at photo (25), . . . . . Crawl on arm (100)
53
what is step 3 of systematic desensitisation?
patient meets each scenario, relaxing as they do so. Once patient has relaxed in each scenario, move onto next one
54
what is step 4 of systematic desensitisation?
patient eventually masters the feared situation
55
what is counter conditioning in systematic desensitisation?
patient is taught new associations that runs counter to the original situation (through classical conditioning)
- ‘reciprocal inhibition’: response of relaxation inhibits response of fear
56
what is relaxation in systematic desensitisation?
relaxation taught to patient, e.g. box breathing, mindfulness, scene visualisation, muscle relaxation
57
what is desensitisation hierarchy?
gradually introducing the patient to the feared situation one at a time - situation becomes more familiar
58
what is flooding?
a client is exposed to (or imagines) an immediate extreme form of the threatening situation under relaxed conditions until the anxiety reaction is extinguished
59
how many sessions can flooding take?
1 - 3
60
why does flooding work so well?
without the avoidance behaviour, the patient quickly learns that the phobic stimulus is harmless
- classical conditioning: a CR is extinguished when a CS is encountered without the UCS
61
does the patient need to sign a consent form for flooding?
yes - patient must be fully informed
62
which approach explains depression?
cognitive approach
63
what is the cognitive explanation for depression?
that irrational and negative thinking is the root cause of depression
64
what does the cognitive approach use to explain depression?
the ABC model And Beck’s Negative Triad
65
who came up with the ABC Model?
Albert Ellis (1962)
66
what does the ABC Model stand for?
A - an activating event/ thought/ idea
B - belief (rational/irrational)
C - consequences (healthy/unhealthy)
67
What is ‘musturbation’ in the ABC Model (beliefs)?
- Ellis describes this as inappropriately rigid ‘must’ thoughts
- perfectionism: negative thoughts when one fails to live up to the idea that they ‘must be perfect’
- the need for validation: ‘indeed to be accepted’
- unreasonable expectation: what other things/ people ‘must do what I want’ (for me to be happy)
68
What does holding ‘musturbation’ beliefs inevitably lead to?
despression
69
what is Beck’s Negative Triad (1967)?
Beck further examined the ‘beliefs’ stage. Claimed that depression is caused by negative self-schemas, maintaining the cognitive triad - a negative and irrational view of:
ourselves, future, world.
70
What did Beck say about these schemas of the world in his Negative Triad?
these schemas are developed by childhood and depressed people possess negative schemas which may come from negative experiences (e.g. criticism from parents)
71
what are cognitive biases in the cognitive explanation for depression?
- they are ‘faulty thinking’ processes that humans do, and they impair rational ways of thinking
- may apply in specific ways to depressed people
- confirmation bias: seeking out evidence to support our negative views, whilst ignoring contradictory evidence
- pessimism bias: overestimating the likelihood of a bad thing happening compared to a rational assessment
72
What are the cognitive (approach) treatments for depression?
- challenging irrational thoughts
- disputing cognitions
- unconditional positive regard
- CBT / REBT
73
How did Ellis challenge irrational thoughts?
Ellis extended his ABC Model to: ABCDEF
- D: disputing irrational thoughts and beliefs
- E: effects of disputing and effective attitude to life
- F: new feelings/ emotions that are produced
74
what are disputing cognitions?
- empirically unsound: no evidence for what they believe
- logically unsound: seriously misinterpreted evidence for their beliefs
- pragmatically unsound: even if there is good evidence, a belief should be abandoned because it will lea to unhelpful outcomes
75
what is the Unconditional Positive Regard?
- Ellis adopted this idea from Humanistic Psychology
- regardless of behaviour and experiences, the client should be encouraged to feel positive about themselves (this should lead to more positive choices)
- therapist must consider this in how they relate to client
76
what does CBT stand for?
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy
77
what does CBT do?
helps you to spot negative thoughts and replace them with more helpful ones, which can change how you behave
78
What are the features of CBT?
- homework (try out new behaviours between sessions, e.g. go an a date if they think they’re unlovable)
- behavioural activation (take on new activities, e.g. exercise - enhance their mood and ability to enjoy a productive life)
79
what does REBT stand for?
Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy
80
what does REBT do?
more direct than CBT, focuses on teaching to not take yourself or your mistakes seriously, to challenge these irrational beliefs. It is about accepting yourself and realising that you don’t have to be perfect
81
what is a concordance rate?
a measure of genetic similarity (percentage)
82
what is dopamine?
one of the key neurotransmitters in the brain, with effects on motivation and 'drive'
83
what is serotonin?
a neurotransmitter implicated in in many different behaviours and physiological processes, including aggression, eating behaviour, sleep and depression
84
what is a gene?
a part of a chromosome of an organism that carries information in the form of DNA
85
what is a neurotransmitter?
chemical substances that play an important part in the workings of the nervous system by transmitting nerve impulses across a synapse
86
which approach explains OCD?
biological
87
what 2 explanations does the biological approach use to explain OCD?
genetic and neural explanations
88
what does the genetic explanation for OCD say about predisposition (for the disorder)?
it may be inherited
89
what are the 3 main sources of information for the genetic explanations of OCD?
- family studies
- twin studies
- newer research methods
90
what are the levels of serotonin and dopamine in patients with OCD?
low levels of serotonin
high levels of dopamine
91
how does the COMT gene explain OCD?
- regulates the production of dopamine
92
in OCD, what does the variation of the COMT gene do?
what does this mean, in terms of dopamine
decreases the amount of COMT available
dopamine is not controlled, so probably too much of it
93
how does the SERT gene explain OCD?
what does this mean, in terms of serotonin?
affects the transportation of serotonin
creates lower levels of this neurotransmitter
94
what did Taylor (2013) carry out?
a meta-analysis of 230 studies of candidate genes for OCD
95
What did Lewis (1936) find?
37% of patients with OCD had a parent with OCD and 21% had a sibling with the disoreder
96
how does a neurotransmitter contribute to the transmission of chemical messages through the brain?
by passing a signal across the synapse
97
what are neurotransmitters identified as important for (e.g. serotonin)?
mood and anxiety regulation
98
what levels of serotonin are found in OCD sufferers?
lower levels
99
what does serotonin and other NTs help the functionings of?
OFC and caudate nucleus
100
what does serotonin deficiency initiate?
faulty signals from OFC
101
How does the ‘worry circuit’ work?
the OFC sends ‘worry’ signals to the thalamus (e.g. potential germ hazard’. These are normally suppressed by the caudate nucleus, but if damaged, the thalamus is alerted and confirms the ‘worry’ to the OFC, creating a worry circuit
102
what dopamine enable, and where?
neurotransmission - particularly in the basal ganglia
103
what is activity in the basal ganglia region of the brain associated with?
heightened sensitivity and movement
104
what levels of dopamine are found in OCD sufferers?
High levels
105
what biological treatment is used for OCD?
drug therapy
106
what does GABA stand for?
gamma-aminobutyric acid
107
what is GABA?
A neurotransmitter that regulates excitement in the nervous system, thus acting as a neutral form of anxiety reducer
108
what is noradrenaline?
a neurotransmitter implicated in areas if the brain that are involved in governing automatic nervous system activity, e.g. blood pressure or heart rate
109
What is the process of serotonin getting passed between transmitting neurons (in a non-OCD sufferer)?
- the serotonin passes from the pre-synapse to the post-synapse
- starts in the vesicle containing serotonin
- across the synapse
- binds to the serotonin receptors on the post-synapse
-the serotonin is then re-absorbed back into the pre-synapse through the re-uptake port (which allows the transmission signal to the target cell)
110
What does low levels of serotonin (in OCD) do the number of receptors?
What does this mean/do?
increase the number
Become more sensitive to anything in the environment
111
In OCD, why are there low levels of serotonin in the synapse?
What does this do to brain communication?
the re-uptake of serotonin may happen too quickly before it can fully transmit the signal
contributes to inefficient communication in brain areas
112
what does SSRI stand for?
Selective Serotonin Re-uptake Inhibitor
113
What are SSRIs?
a type of antidepressant
114
what do SSRIs do?
increase the levels of serotonin in the synapse by blocking the re-uptake port in the pre-synapse
| hopefullydecrease no.receptors so less sensitiveto environmenteventually
115
Give an example of an SSRIs
Prozac
116
what was the first antidepressant to be used for OCD?
tricyclic (Anafranil)
117
what does the tricyclic antidepressant do?
- block the transporter mechanism
- then re-absorbs both serotonin and noradrenaline
- both these NTs are left in the synapse, prolonging the activity there
118
what are Benzodiazapines?
anti-anxiety drugs
119
how do Benzodiazapines reduce anxiety?
slow down the Central Nervous System (CNS) - by enhancing the activity of the neurotransmitter: GABA
120
what effect does GABA have on the brain?
general quietening effect
121
how does GABA slow down the receiving neuron's activity and 'quiet down' the neuron and CNS?
- locks onto serotonin receptors
- channels are then opened
- which increase the flow of chlorine ions into the neuron
- makes it harder for the neuron to be stimulated by other NTs
