Psypath: characteristics AO1

Question 1

2 most common diagnostic manuals

Answer 1

DSM (diagnostic statistical manual)- 5th vers., published by American Psychiatric Association (APA)
ICD (International Statistical Classification of Diseases)- 11th vers., published by WHO

Question 2

categories of symptoms

Answer 2

Emotional- feelings.
Behavioral- actions.
Cognitive- thoughts.

Question 3

What is the definition of a phobia?

Answer 3

Persistent irrational fear of a specific situation/object/activity- disruptive to everyday life
Strenuously avoided/endured with distress

Question 4

3 categories of phobias recognised by DSM-5?

Answer 4

Specific phobia: phobia of an object/situation e.g. an animal/body part, flying/injection.
Social phobia/anxiety: fear of social situation e.g. public speaking/public toilet.
Agoraphobia: phobia of being outside/public space

Question 5

diagnostic criteria for phobias for DSM-5?

Answer 5

emotional/behavioral/cognitive responses almost always triggered to phobic stimulus for 6+ months

Question 6

emotional symptoms w/ phobias

Answer 6

Anxiety: emotional response of anxiety- high arousal.
Fear: immediate/unpleasant response when encounter/think about a phobic stimulus (PS)
Unreasonable: disproportionate to posed threats

Question 7

behavioural symptoms w/ phobias

Answer 7

Panic: shortness of breath/shaking/high heart rates
Avoidance: effort to avoid the PS (can affect daily life- e.g. reducing sleep).
Endurance: chooses to remain in the presence of PS- e.g. someone w/arachnophobia remaining near a spider w/an eye on it, not leaving

Question 8

cognitive symptoms w/ phobias

Answer 8

Selective attention: hard to look away from PS
Irrational beliefs: phobic person does not respond to evidence- e.g. finding out flying is less dangerous than driving does not reduce the phobia
Cognitive distortions: thoughts about PS are distorted- e.g. someone w/arachnophobia sees them as bigger than they are

Question 9

definition of a depression?

Answer 9

persistent sadness + lack of interest/pleasure in rewarding/enjoyable activities
Disturbs sleep/appetite- causes tiredness + poor concentration

Question 10

4 categories of depression recognised by DSM-5?

Answer 10

Major depressive disorder (DD): severe, s-t depression
Persistent DD: l-t/recurring depression, incl. sustained major depression (prev. called dysthymia).
Disruptive mood dysregulation disorder: childhood temper tantrums.
Premenstrual dysphoric disorder: disruption to mood prior to and/or during menstruation

Question 11

diagnostic criteria for depression for DSM-5?

Answer 11

Depressed mood for most of day
anhedonia (lack of interest) persisting for at least 2 weeks

Question 12

emotional symptoms w/ depression.

Answer 12

Lowered mood (req. symptom): includes feeling empty/worthless/hopeless
Anhedonia: loss of interest/pleasure in hobbies + activities prev. enjoyed, (maybe) w/ avolition (loss of motivation to perform goal-directed activities)
Anger: to others/self- from gen. feeling of being hurt
Lowered self-esteem: low perception of self; can lead to self-loathing

Question 13

behavioural symptoms w/depression

Answer 13

Reduction in energy: tiredness/desire to sleep/lower activity; can be the opposite: psychomotor agitation
Insomnia/increased sleep
Appetite changes: eat more/less
Aggression or self-harm: more irritable/verbally, physically aggressive/ending jobs, relationships/self-harm (cutting/suicide attempts)

Question 14

cognitive symptoms w/ depression

Answer 14

Negative thoughts: negative self-beliefs- guilt/worthlessness
Poor concentration: can’t focus on a task as much as normal/hard to make decisions
Memory bias: cognitive bias- remember unhappy events more easily
Absolutist thinking: see things as ‘black and white’- can catastrophise situations, seeing something unfortunate as an absolute disaster.

Question 15

definition of an OCD?

Answer 15

obsessive thoughts (internal) and compulsive behaviours (external)

Question 16

4 categories of OCD recognised by DSM-5?

Answer 16

OCD: obsessive, recurring thoughts/images/compulsions (e.g. hand washing/repeated behaviours).
Trichotillomania: compulsive hair pulling
Hoarding disorder: compulsive gathering of possessions, inability to part w/anything regardless of value
Excoriation disorder: compulsive skin-picking

Question 17

diagnostic criteria for OCD for DSM-5?

Answer 17

Presence of obsessions/compulsions/both
time consuming/causes significant distress of impact daily functioning.

Question 18

emotional symptoms w/ OCD

Answer 18

Anxiety + distress: obsessive thoughts are intrusive/frightening- urge to repeat behaviour is anxiety inducing
Guilt + Disgust: often aware their thoughts= irrational + behaviours= abnormal, can suffer guilt over minor moral issues, disgust directed to self or externally (e.g. dirt)
Depression: often accompanied w/depression; compulsive behaviour can bring relief, but only s-t

Question 19

behavioural symptoms w/ OCD

Answer 19

Repetitive Compulsive behaviour: compelled to act on obsessive thoughts w/ repetitive behaviours (compulsions)- e.g. handwashing/praying- repetitive, unpleasant, interfere w/ daily life
Compulsions reduce anxiety: compulsions done to reduce anxiety- e.g. handwashing due to fear of germs; compulsive checking (a door is locked/appliance switched off) in response to the obsessive thought it was unsecured
Avoidance: avoid situations triggering obsessions/compulsions- e.g. avoiding obsessive thoughts abt germs- not emptying bins

Question 20

cognitive symptoms w/ OCD

Answer 20

Obsessive thoughts: obsessions = intrusive/recurring/unwanted thoughts- 90% of OCD patients suffer (e.g. unlocked front door)- present on most days for 2 weeks+.
Hypervigilance: selective attending + increased awareness of source of obsession in new situations
Sufferer is aware these obsessive thoughts are irrational: aware cognitions are irrational, but maintain constant alertness + focus on potential hazards
Cognitive coping strategies: e.g. religious person tormented by guilt may respond by praying/meditating- helps manage anxiety, but distracting

Question 21

specific phobia

Answer 21

phobia of an object/situation

Question 22

social phobia

Answer 22

phobia of a social situation

Question 23

agoraphobia

Answer 23

phobia of public spaces

Question 24

major depressive disorder

Answer 24

severe, s-t depression

Question 25

persistent depressive disorder

Answer 25

l-t reccuring depression

Question 26

disruptive mood dysregulation

Answer 26

childhood temper tantrums

Question 27

premenstrual dysphoric disorder

Answer 27

disruption to mood before/during menstruation

Question 28

OCD

Answer 28

obsessive thoughts, compulsive behaviours

Question 29

trichotillomania

Answer 29

compulsive hair pulling

Question 30

hoarding

Answer 30

compulsive gathering of possessions + inability to part w/them

Question 31

excoriation

Answer 31

compulsive skin picking

Question 32

anhedonia

Answer 32

inability/diff to feel pleasure

Question 33

avolition

Answer 33

diff to keep up w/goal directed tasks

Question 34

obsession

Answer 34

unwanted repeated thoughts/urges

Question 35

compusion

Answer 35

repetitive behaviours in response to obsessions