Wk1

Question 1

What are 2 views on the causes of abnormal behaviour?

Answer 1

Relativist (variation across/due to cultures) 
Absolutist (bio factors)

Question 2

What are some elements of abnormality?

Answer 2

Personal suffering 
Maladaptiveness
Irrationality
level of emotional distress
interference in daily functioning
Deviations from norm
Observer discomfort/ violation of moral standards

Question 3

What do mental disorders involve? 3

Answer 3

Present distress
Disability (impaired function
Significant risk of suffering or loss of freedom

Question 4

What concerns are relevant to defining abnormal behaviour? 3

Answer 4

Is behaving different bad? 
Does it impact the individual or others?
Duration

Question 5

Was drapetomania a legitimate illness?

Answer 5

No, slaves are bad in the first place

Question 6

What is the trade off for having a clinical label?

Answer 6

Stigma and discrimination due to carrying it with you (employment/social) 
But, accurate diagnoses can facilitate effective treatment and support

Question 7

What is the difference between incidence and prevalence?

Answer 7

Number of new cases vs active cases, in a time period

Question 8

What is lifetime prevalence?

Answer 8

The proportion of everybody that has been affected at any point in their lives

Question 9

Australian who attempt suicide every day

Answer 9

100

Question 10

How seriously should we take mental health (economically)?

Answer 10

More burden than cancer and infectious disease

Question 11

how did Hippocrates classify mental disorders and view their causes?

Answer 11

Mania, Melancholia, Phrenities (Brain-fever). They had natural causes: imbalance in essential fluids (blood, Phlegm, Yellow & Black bile)

Question 12

what happened to views of psychopathology in the Middle Ages, after the Roman Empire fell?

Answer 12

Dominance of religion precluded popularity of supernatural views
Evil forces, and devils

Question 13

How did the renaissance change views of psychopathology?

Answer 13

A more humane view of the mentally ill returned - Weyer, the first physician to specialise in mental illness treatment 
People looked for effective treatments

Question 14

What was moral treatment in the 19th century?

Answer 14

Recognition of individual rights

Question 15

What inspired the modern search for biological causes?

Answer 15

Syphilis. It led to general paresis (emotional/personality changes & cognitive impairment. People looked to biology.

Question 16

Why did somatic treatments come to the forefront in 20s and 30s?

Answer 16

A biological model of causes, suggested biological treatments, like fever therapy, insulin coma therapy, lobotomy etc.

Question 17

What happened in the psychoanalytic revolution?

Answer 17

Mesmer used hypnosis, Breuer added hypnosis + catharsis. Freud refined this to just catharsis (via free association).

Question 18

What came out of the psychoanalytic revolution?

Answer 18

1. Psychological factors affect behaviour 
2. Talking treatment more effective than harsh physical/moral treatments
3. Behaviour influenced by thoughts, impulses, and wishes (which we aren’t aware of)
4. Non-psychotic disorders are worthy of treatment

Question 19

What principles (2) underlie the biopsychosocial model of abnormal behaviour?

Answer 19

1. Each individual is unique, with many different factors combined obfuscating any specific model 
2. Diathesis-stress framework

Question 20

What are 3 aspects of the current view of psychopathology?

Answer 20

1. Behaviour is viewed within context
2. Scientist practitioner approach 
3. Holistic, multidisciplinary approaches

Question 21

What is the purpose of classification?

Answer 21

Enables clinicians to diagnose 
Facilitates communication, research, treatment selection

Question 22

What is a key issue with classification?

Answer 22

Categorical vs dimensional approaches. 

Is it that you have it or you dont, or that you have something to some degree.

Question 23

What are criticisms of a classification approach?

Answer 23

Classification is irrelevant because it ignores information/loses individual info 
Problems with reliability and validity of diagnoses 
Diagnostic bias 
Distinct entity vs continuum approach

Question 24

What are three aspects of labelling controversy in the DSM?

Answer 24

They: 
shape perceptions
cause prejudicial treatment
foster self-fulfilling prophecies

Question 25

What is the rosenhan experiment and how did it make a laughing stock of the psychiatric profession?

Answer 25

Phase 1: 

Phase 2:

Question 26

What are approaches to tests? 8

Answer 26

Projective tests (like Rorschach)
Personality inventories (MMPI, Eysenck, California etc) 
Inventories: affective, social skills, cognitive 
Intelligence tests 
Neuropsychological 
Neurological (EEG and CAT scans)
Behavioural (self-monitoring, etc)
Physiological (SCR, HR, EMR)