Unit 1 - Introduction Flashcards
(142 cards)
1
Q
Abnormal psychology
A
The scientific study of abnormal behavior in an effort to describe, predict, explain, and change abnormal patterns of functioning
2
Q
Norms
A
A society’s stated and unstated rules for proper conduct
3
Q
Culture
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A people’s common history, values, institutions, habits, skills, technology, and arts
4
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Deviant
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Different, extreme, unusual, perhaps even bizarre
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Q
Distressing
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Unpleasant and upsetting to the person
6
Q
Dysfunctional
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Interfering with the persons ability to conduct daily activities in a constructive way
7
Q
Dangerous
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To oneself or others
8
Q
Treatment or therapy
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A procedure to help change abnormal behavior into more normal behavior
9
Q
Trephination
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An ancient operation in which a stone instrument was used to cut away a circular section of the skull, perhaps to treat abnormal behavior
10
Q
Humors
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According to the Greeks and romans, bodily chemicals that influence mental and physical functioning
11
Q
Exorcism
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The idea was to coax the evil spirits to leave or make the persons body an uncomfortable place in which to live
12
Q
Shaman
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A priest who recite prayers, plead with evil spirits, insult them
13
Q
Mass madness
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Large numbers of people apparently shared absurd false beliefs and imagined sights or sounds
14
Q
Tarantism
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Groups of people would suddenly start to jump, dance, and go into convulsions
15
Q
Lycanthropy
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People who thought they were possessed by wolves or other animals
16
Q
Asylum
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A type of institution that first became popular in the sixteenth century to provide care for persons with mental disorders. Most became virtual prisons.
17
Q
Moral treatment
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A 19th century approach to treating people with mental dysfunction that emphasized moral guidance and humane and respectful treatment
18
Q
State hospitals
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State run public mental institutions in the unites states
19
Q
Somatogenic perspective
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The view that abnormal psychological functioning has physical causes
20
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Psychogenic perspective
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The view that the chief causes of abnormal functioning are psychological
21
Q
Lobotomy
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A surgical cutting of certain nerve fibers in the brain
22
Q
Hypnotism
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(psych perspective) a procedure that places people in a translike mental state during which they become extremely suggestible
23
Q
Hysterical disorders
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Mysterious bodily ailments that had no apparent physical basis
24
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Psychoanalysis
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Either the theory or the treatment of abnormal mental functioning that emphasizes unconscious psychological forces as the cause of psychopathology
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Psychotropic medications
Drugs that mainly affect the brain and reduce many symptoms of mental dysfunctioning
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Antipsychotic drugs
Correct extremely confused and distorted thinking
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Antidepressant drugs
Lift the mood of depressed people
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Anti anxiety drugs
Reduce tension and worry
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Deinstititionalization
The practice, begun in the 1960s, of releasing hundreds of thousands of patients from public mental hospitals
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Prevention
Interventions aimed at deterring disorders before they develop
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Positive psychology
Te study and enhancement of positive feelings, traits, and abilities
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Multicultural psychology
The field that examines the impact of culture, race, gender, and similar factors on our behaviors and focuses on how such factors may influence abnormal behavior
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Managed care program
A system of health care coverage in which the insurance company largely controls the nature, scope, and cost of services
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Psychoanalytic perspective
Emphasis on unconscious psychological problems as the cause of abnormal behavior
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Scientific method
The process of systematically gathering and evaluating information through careful observations to gain an understanding of a phenomenon
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Nomothetic
General understanding of the nature, causes, and treatments of abnormality
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Case study
A detailed account of a persons life and psychological problems
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Correlation
The degree to which events or characteristics vary along with each other
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Correlational method
A research procedure used to determine how much events or characteristics vary along with each other
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Incidence
The number of new cases that emerge during a given period of time
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Prevalence
The total number of cases in the population during a given time period
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Epidemiological study
A study that measures the incidence and prevalence of a disorder in a given population
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Longitudial study
A study that observes the same participants on many occasions over a long period of time
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Experiment
A research procedure in which a variable is manipulated and the effect of its manipulation is observed
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Independent variable
The variable in an experiment that is manipulated to determine whether it has an effect on another variable
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Dependent variable
The variable in an experiment that is expected to change as the independent variable is manipulated
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Rosenthal effect
The experimenter might smile and act confident when providing real medication to the experimental participants but frown and appear hesitant when offering the placebo drugs to the control participants
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Random assignment
A selection procedure that ensures that participants are randomly placed either in the cool group or in the experimental group
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Blind design
An experiment in which participants do not know whether they are in the experimental or the control condition
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Quasi experiment
An experiment in which investigators make use of the control and experimental groups that already exist in the world at large. Also called a mixed design
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Natural experiment
An experiment in which nature, rather than an experimenter, manipulates an independent variable
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Analogue experiment
A research method in which the experimenter produces abnormal-like behavior in laboratory participants and then conducts experiments on the participants
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Single subject experimental design
A research method in which a single participant is observed and measured both before and after the manipulation of an independent variable
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Model
A set of assumptions and concepts that help scientists explain and interpret observations. Also called a paradigm
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Neuron
A nerve cell
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Synapse
The tiny space between the nerve ending of one neuron and the dendrite of another
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Neurotransmitter
A chemical that, released by one neuron, crosses the synaptic space to be received at receptors on the dendrites of neighboring neurons
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Biological model
Physical processes as key to human behavior
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Psychodynamic model
Looks at people unconscious internal processes and conflict
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Behavioral model
Emphasizes behavior and the ways in which it is learned
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Cognitive model
Concentrates on the thinking that underlies behavior
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Humanistic-existential model
Stresses the role of values and choices
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Sociocultural model
Looks to social and cultural forces as the keys to human functioning
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Family social model
Focuses on an individual's family and social interactions
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Multicultural perspective
Emphasizes an individuals culture and the shared beliefs,values, and history of the culture
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Hormones
The chemicals released by endocrine glands into the bloodstream
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Gene
Chromosome segments that control the characteristics and traits we inherit
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Psychotropic medications
Drugs that primarily affect the brain and reduce many symptoms of mental dysfunctioning
69
ECT
A form of biological treatment, used primarily in depressed patients, in which a brain seizure is triggered as an electric current passes through electrodes attached to the patients forehead
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Psychosurgery
Brain surgery for mental disorders
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Id
According to Freud, the psychological factors that produces instinctual needs, drives, and impulses
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Ego
According to Freud, the psychological force that employs reason and operates in accordance with the reality principle
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Ego defense mechanism
According to psychoanalytic theory, strategies developed by the ego to control unacceptable Id impulses and to avoid or reduce he anxiety they arouse
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Superego
According to Freud, the psychological force that represents a persons values and ideals
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Fixation
According to Freud, a condition in which the id, ego, and superego do not mature properly and are frozen at an early stage of development
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Free association
A psychodynamic technique in which the patient describes only thought, feeling, or image that comes to mind, even if it seems unimportant
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Resistance
An unconscious refusal to participate fully in therapy
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Transference
According to psychodynamic theorists, the redirection toward the psychotherapist of feelings associated with important figures in a patients life, now or in the paste
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Dream
A series of ideas and images that form during sleep
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Catharsis
The reliving of past repressed feelings in order to settle internal conflicts and overcome problems
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Conditioning
A simple form of learning
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Operant conditioning
A process of learning in which behavior that leads to satisfying consequences is likely to be repeated
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Modeling
A process of learning in which an individual acquires responses by observing and imitating others
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Classical conditioning
A process of learning by temporal association in which two events that repeatedly occur close together in time become fused in a persons mind and produce the same response
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Systematic desensitization
A behavioral treatment in which clients with phobias learn to react calmly instead of with intense fear to her objects or situations they dread
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Cognitive therapy
A therapy developed by aaron beck that helps people recognize and change their faulty thinking processes
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Self actualization
The humanistic process by which people fulfill their potential for goodness and growth
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Client centered therapy
The humanistic therapy developed by Carl Rogers in which clinicians try to help clients by conveying acceptance, accurate empathy, and genuiness
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Gestalt therapy
The humanistic therapy developed by fritz perls in which clinicians actively move clients toward self recognition and self acceptance by using techniques such as role playing and self discovery exercises
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Existential therapy
A therapy that encourage clients to accept responsibility for their lives and to live with greater meaning and values.
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Family system therapy
A theory that views the family as a system if interacting parts whose interactions exhibit consistent patterns and unstated rules
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Group therapy
A therapy format in which a group with similar problems meet together with a therapist to work on those problems
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Self help group
A group made up of people with similar problem who help and support one another without the direct leadership of a clinician
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Family therapy
A therapy format in which the therapist meets with all members of a family and helps them to change in therapeutic ways
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Couple therapy
A therapy format in which the therapist works with two people who share a long term relationship
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Community mental health treatment
A treatment approach that emphasizes community care
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Multicultural perspective
The view that each culture has a set of values and beliefs, as well as special external pressures, that help account for the behavior of is members
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Cultural sensitive therapies
Approaches that seek the address the unique issues faced by members of,minority groups
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Gender sensitive therapies
Approaches geared to the pressures of being a woman in western society. Also called feminist therapies
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idiographic understanding
an understanding of the behavior of a particular individual
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assessment
the process of collecting and interpreting relevant information about a client or research participant
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standandarization
the process in which a test is administered to a large group of people whose performance then serves as a standard or norm against which any individuals score can be measured
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reliability
a measure of the consistency of test or research results
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validity
the accuracy of a tests or study's results; that is, the extent to which the test or study actually measures or shows what it claims
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mental status exam
a set of interview questions and observations designed to reveal the degree and nature of a clients abnormal functioning
106
test
a device for gathering information about a few aspects of a persons psychological functioning from which broader information about the person can be inferred
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projective test
a test consisting of ambiguous material that people interrupt or respond to
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personality inventory
a test designed to measure broad personality characteristics, consisting of statements about behaviors, beliefs, and feelings that people evaluate as either characteristics or uncharacteristics of them
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response invertories
tests designed to measure a persons responses in one specific area of functioning, such as affect, social skills, or cognitive processes
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psychophysiological test
a test that measures physical responses (such as heart rate and muscle tension) as possible indicators of psychological problems
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neurological test
a test the directly measures brain structure and activity
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neuroimaging techniques
neurological tests that provide images of brain structurener or activity, such as CT scans, PET scans, and MRIs. also called brain scans
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neuropsychological test
a test that detects brain impairment by measuring a persons cognitive, perceptual, and motor performance
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intelligence test
a test designed to measure a persons intellectual ability
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intelligence quotient (IQ)
an overall score derived from intelligence tests
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diagnosis
a determination that a persons problems reflect a particular disorder
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syndrome
a cluster of symptoms that usually occur together
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classification system
a list of disorders, along with descriptions of symptoms and guidelines for making appropriate diagnosis
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empirically supported tretment
a movement in the clinical field that seeks to identify which therapists have received clear research support for each disorder, to develop corresponding treatment guidelines, and to spread such information to clinicians. also known as evidence-based treatment
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reapprochment movement
an effort to identify a set of common strategies that run through the work of all effective therapists
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psychopharmacologist
a psychiatrist who primarily prescribes medications
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forensic psychology
the branch of psychology concerned with intersections between psychological practice and research and the judicial system
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criminial commitment
a legal process by which people accused of a crime are instead judged mentally unstable and sent to a mental health facility for treatment
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not guilty by reason of insanity
a verdict stating that defendants are not guilty of committing a crime because they were insane at the time of the crime
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M'Naghten test
a widely used legal test for insanity that holds people to be insane at the time they committed a crime if, because of a mental disorder, they did not know the nature of the act or did not know right from wrong
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irresistible impulse test
a legal test for insanity that holds people to be insane at the time they committed a crime if they were driven to do so by an uncontrollable "fit of passion"
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Durham test
a legal test for insanity that holds people to be insane at the time they committed a crime if their act was the result of a mental disorder or defect
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American Law Institure test
a legal test for insanity that holds people to be insane at the time they committed a crime if, because of a mental disorder, they did not know right from wrong or could not resist an uncontrollable impulse to act
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guilty but mentally ill
a verdict stating that defendants are guilty of committing a crime but are also suffering from a mental illness that should be traeted during their imprisonment
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mental incompetence
a state of mental instability that leaves defendants unable to understand the legal charges and proceedings they are facing and unable to prepare an adequate defense with their attorney
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civil commitment
a legal process by which an individual can be forced to undergo mental health treatment
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right to treatment
the legal right of patients, particularly those whose are involuntarily committed, to receive adequate treatment
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right to refuse treatment
the legal right of patients to refuse certain forms of treatment
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malpractice suit
a lawsuit charging a therapist with improper conduct in the course of treatment
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code of ethics
a body of principles and rules for ethical behavior, designed to guide decisions and actions by members of a profession
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confidentiality
the principle that certain professionals will not divulge the information they obtain from a client
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duty to protect
the principle that therapists must break confidentiality in order to protect a person who may be the intended victim of a client
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employee assistnece program
a mental health program offered by a business to its employees
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stress-reduction and problem solving seminar
a workshop or series of group sessions offered by a business in which mental health professionals teach employees how to cope with and solve problems and reduce stress
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managed car programs
an insurance program in which the insurance company decides the cost, method, provider, and length of treatment
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peer review system
a system by which clinicians paid by an insurance company may periodically review a patients progress and recommend the continuation or termination of benefits
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overgeneralization
the drawing of broad negative conclusions on the basis of one single insignificant event
