Download Abnormal Psych Midterm 1 and more Exams Psychology in PDF only on Docsity!
Abnormal Psych Midterm 1
Depression - Low, sad state in which life seems dark and its challenges overwhelming Mania - State of breathless euphoria or frenzied energy unipolar depression - Person has no history of mania Mood returns to normal when depression lifts Abnormal psychology - The scientific study of abnormal behavior in an effort to describe, predict, explain, and change abnormal patterns of functioning The 4 D's -
- Deviance - Different, extreme, unusual, perhaps even bizarre
- ex: boy identifies as male goes to school in a dress
- Distress - Unpleasant and upsetting to the person
- Dysfunction - Interfering with the person's ability to conduct daily activities in a constructive way
- Danger - Posing risk of harm Deviance - ◦ From behaviors, thoughts, and emotions that differ markedly from a society's ideas about proper functioning Implied/communicated (society, community, family norms) ◦ From social norms Stated and unstated rules for proper conduct Examples?
- norms: a society's stated and unstated rules for proper conduct.
- culture: a people's common history, values, institutions, habits, skills, technology, and arts. Judgments of abnormality vary from society to society as norms grow from a particular culture ◦ They also depend on specific circumstances Distress - According to many clinical theorists, behavior, ideas, or emotions usually have to cause distress before they can be labeled abnormal ◦ Not always the case ◦ Symptom dealing with (ex. depression, anxiety) ◦ Curious what's fueling the distress Dysfunction - it interferes with daily functioning On a continuum (everyone has some form of dysfunction in family, etc. (subjective))
Culture plays a role in the definition of abnormality Dysfunction alone does not necessarily indicate psychological abnormality Danger - Abnormal behavior may become dangerous to oneself or others ◦ Behavior may be consistently careless, hostile, or confused ◦ People with mental health issues are not dangerous, more likely to be victimized Danger to self (suicide), others (threat) Trephination - An ancient operation in which a stone instrument was used to cut away a circular section of the skull, perhaps to treat abnormal behavior. Somatogenic Perspective - the body ◦Abnormal functioning has physical causes Two factors were responsible for the rebirth of this perspective: ◦ Emil Kraepelin argued that physical factors (such as fatigue) are responsible for mental dysfunction ◦ New biological discoveries were made, such as the link between untreated syphilis and general paresis Despite the general optimism, biological approaches yielded mostly disappointing results throughout the first half of the twentieth century, until a number of effective medications were finally discovered Psychogenic Perspective - the psychological ◦Abnormal functioning has psychological causes (hypnotism) The rise in popularity of this perspective was based on work with hypnotism: ◦ Friedrich Mesmer and hysterical disorders Hypnotized people ◦ Sigmund Freud's theory of psychoanalysis Male therapists, female clients Freud and his followers offered treatment primarily to patients who did not require hospitalization - now known as outpatient therapy (asylums going down) ◦ By the early 20th century, psychoanalytic theory and treatment were widely accepted ◦ Before only medical doctors could be analysts to do therapy positive psychology - the study and enhancement of positive feelings, traits, and abilities looks at people's strengths Multicultural psychologists - seek to understand how culture, race, ethnicity, gender, and similar factors affect behavior and thought and how people of different cultures, races, and genders may differ psychologically Need to educate yourself on the other
Lifeforce, moving towards/into life All have sexual and aggressive desires Ego - guided by the Reality Principle Seeks gratification, but guides us to know when we can and cannot express our wishes defense mechanisms protect us from anxiety What you should/shouldn't do Superego - guided by the Morality Principle Conscience; unconsciously adopted from our parents What guides you
- Things you're not aware of has an influence on you
- Through talk therapy, making the unconscious conscious Ego-Defense Mechanisms - Repression (something bad happens, cannot remember (unconscious) Sublimation Regression Introjection Identification Compensation Denial (seems obvious to everyone else but you) Reaction Formation: one defense against a threatening impulse is to actively express the opposite impulse Projection Displacement Rationalization Repression - an involuntary removal of something from consciousness If made conscious, does not seep out in self destructive ways Denial - a way of distorting what the individual thinks, feels, or perceives in a traumatic situation. Reaction formation - one defense against a threatening impulse is to actively express the opposite impulse Ex: behave opposite of how you actually feel
Projection - attributing to others one's own unacceptable desires and impulses Take aspects of yourself and putting it on someone else Ex: everyone else in the world is selfish (not enough ego strength to acknowledge it) Displacement - directing energy toward another object or person when the original object or person is inaccessible Ex: boss yells at you, come home and yell at roommate Take energy and displace onto another object Ex: road rage, taps into anger that was already there Rationalization - explaining away failures or losses (justifying) Ex: fail midterm, blame bad teacher Sublimation - diverting sexual or aggressive energy into other channels, ones that are usually socially acceptable and sometimes even admirable Sexual energy as a life force Ex: someone who is sadistic and becomes anesthesiologist to put people under Take aggressive instincts into something acceptable (football) Regression - reverting to a from of behavior that is not so demanding (immature or that they had grown out of) Way to not be responsible/accountable Introjection - taking in and swallowing the values and standards of others. Ex: religious upbringing (no premarital sex), have premarital sex and feel guilty (internalize someone else's values) Identification - it can enhance self-worth and protect one from a sense of being a failure Ex: avid sports fan - identify with a team (to give sense of identity). Enhance own self- esteem/self worth (Greek system)
Breaking up with boyfriend after boyfriend (not perfect dad) (psychodynamic therapy) Catharsis - "aha: moment (psychodynamic therapy) Behavioral Model (CBT, cognitive-behavioral theory) - believe that our actions are determined largely by our experiences in life What you see is what you get (not very deep) Concentrates wholly on behaviors and environmental factors Bases explanations and treatments on principles of learning Several forms of conditioning: Operant conditioning: rewards and punishments Modeling: monkey see monkey do Looking at someone else, and emulating their behavior Classical conditioning: CS, US All may produce normal or abnormal behavior Operant conditioning - ◦ Humans and animals learn to behave in certain ways as a result of receiving rewards whenever they do so Punishment: decrease behavior Reward: increase behavior Positive reinforcement: adding/giving something Negative reinforcement: taking away something Punishment - decrease behavior Reward - increase behavior Positive reinforcement - adding/giving something Negative reinforcement - taking away something Modeling - Individuals learn responses by observing and repeating behavior Classical conditioning - ◦ Learning by temporal association When two events repeatedly occur close together in time, they become fused in a person's mind; before long, the person responds in the same way to both events ◦ Unconditioned response and conditioned response are the same thing US meat (all dogs have same response) → UR salivate
US meat + tone → UR salivate CS tone → CR salivate Behavioral Therapies - Aim to identify the behaviors that are causing problems and replace them with more appropriate ones ◦ May use classical conditioning, operant conditioning, or modeling Therapist is "teacher" rather than healer Classical conditioning treatments may be used to change abnormal reactions to particular stimuli ◦ Example: systematic desensitization for phobia Step-by-step procedure Learn relaxation skills Construct a fear hierarchy Confront feared situations Cognitive model - proposes that we can best understand abnormal functioning by looking at cognitive processes - the center of behaviors, thoughts, and emotions Argues that clinicians must ask questions about assumptions, attitudes, and thoughts of a client Abnormal functioning can result from several kinds of cognitive problems: ◦ Faulty assumptions and attitudes ◦ Illogical thinking processes Example: overgeneralization Cognitive Therapies - People can overcome their problems by developing new ways of thinking ◦ Mindfulness (be aware of it) Main model: Beck's Cognitive Therapy ◦ The goal of therapy is to help clients recognize and restructure their thinking Therapists also guide clients to challenge their dysfunctional thoughts, try out new interpretations, and apply new ways of thinking in their daily lives Widely used in treating depression Humanistic-Existential Model - Combination model ◦ The humanist view Emphasis on people as friendly, cooperative, and constructive; focus on drive to self- actualize through honest recognition of strengths and weaknesses People are good, we all want to be the best that we can be ◦ The existentialist view Emphasis on self-determination, choice, and individual responsibility; focus on authenticity Life is your responsibility humanist view - Emphasis on people as friendly, cooperative, and constructive; focus on drive to self-actualize through honest recognition of strengths and weaknesses
Went into psych ward (hearing voices), treated as if had schizophrenia (shows symptoms, but actually normal) Attribute everything to schizophrenia symptoms (label) Social implications of labels ◦ Social connections and supports Focus on: ◦ Family structure and communication Family systems theory argues that abnormal functioning within a family leads to abnormal behavior (insane behavior becomes sane in an insane environment) Examples: enmeshed, disengaged structures Family-Social Treatments - This perspective has helped spur the growth of several treatment approaches, including: ◦ Group therapy: How you show up in group, represents how you show up in the world Get feedback from other members ◦ Family therapy Identifying patient (becomes container for pathology for the family) ◦ Couple therapy ◦ Community treatment: community outreach Includes prevention work Multicultural Theorists - Culture refers to the set of values, attitudes, beliefs, history, and behaviors shared by a group of people and communicated from one generation to the next ◦ The multicultural, or culturally diverse, perspective has emerged as a growing field of study ◦ Multicultural psychologists seek to understand how culture, race, ethnicity, gender, and similar factors affect behavior and thought, as well as how people of different cultures, races, and genders differ psychologically ◦ Having sensitivity, being in tune and sensitive to that (therapists) The model holds that an individual's behavior is best understood when examined in the light of that individual's unique cultural context They also have noticed that the prejudice and discrimination faced by many minority groups may contribute to certain forms of abnormal functioning Multicultural Treatments -
- Studies have found that members of ethnic and racial minority groups tend to show less improvement in clinical treatment than members of majority groups
- Two features of treatment can increase a therapist's effectiveness with minority clients:
- Greater sensitivity to cultural issues
- Inclusion of cultural models in treatment, especially in therapies for children and adolescents Freud - Shaped by three unconscious forces:
- Id - guided by the Pleasure Principle Instinctual needs, drives, and impulses (selfishness, greed) Sexual; fueled by libido (sexual energy) Life force, moving towards/into life
All have sexual and aggressive desires
- Ego - guided by the Reality Principle Seeks gratification, but guides us to know when we can and cannot express our wishes Ego defense mechanisms protect us from anxiety What you should/shouldn't do
- Superego - guided by the Morality Principle Conscience; unconsciously adopted from our parents What guides you
- Things you're not aware of has an influence on you
- Through talk therapy, making the unconscious conscious These three parts of the personality are often in some degree of conflict ◦ A healthy personality is one in which an effective working relationship exists among the three forces ◦ If the id, ego, and superego are in excessive conflict, the person's behavior may show signs of dysfunction Freud Developmental Stages - ◦ Freud proposed that at each stage of development new events and pressures require adjustment in the id, ego, and superego Each stages, if not navigated, fixation can occur ◦ Erikson, expanded on model (psychosocial model) If successful → personal growth If unsuccessful → fixation at an early developmental stage, leading to psychological abnormality Because parents are the key figures in early life, they are often seen as the cause of improper development Developmental stages ◦ Oral (0 to 18 months of age) Babies experiences everything through its mouth ◦ Anal (18 months to 3 years of age) Exploring through the anus ◦ Phallic (3 to 5 years of age) Oedipus complex ◦ Latency (5 to 12 years of age) Goes underground (boy have sexual desires to mother) ◦ Genital (12 years of age to adulthood) Puberty, resurfaces FREUD'S PSYCHOSEXUAL STAGES - ORAL STAGE First year - Related to later mistrust and rejection issues No basic trust that needs will be met by mother/family ANAL STAGE Ages 1-3 - Related to later personal power issues Need control with everything PHALLIC STAGE Ages 3-6 - Related to later sexual attitudes Oedipus complex: sexual fantasies toward mom Electracomplex: for girl, kill mother marry father Wanting to be special, have the other person be out of the way Act like mom/dad to get own dad/mom (emulate father/mother) LATENCY STAGE Ages 6-12 - A time of socialization GENITAL STAGE Ages 12-60 -Sexual energies are invested in life
Consists of more than 500 self-statements that can be answered "true," "false," or "cannot say" Statements describe physical concerns, mood, morale, attitudes toward religion, sex, and social activities, and psychological symptoms Assesses careless responding and lying Personality inventories - ◦ Designed to measure broad personality characteristics ◦ Focus on behaviors, beliefs, and feelings ◦ Usually based on self-reported responses ◦ Most widely used: Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory For adults: MMPI (original) or MMPI-2 (1989 revision) For adolescents: MMPI-A ◦ Strengths and weaknesses: Easier, cheaper, and faster to administer than projective tests Objectively scored and standardized Appear to have greater validity than projective tests However, they cannot be considered highly valid - measured traits often cannot be directly examined - how can we really know the assessment is correct? Tests fail to allow for cultural differences in responses Response inventories - ◦ Usually based on self-reported responses ◦ Focus on one specific area of functioning Affective inventories (example: Beck Depression Inventory) Social skills inventories Cognitive inventories ◦ Strengths and weaknesses: Have strong face validity Not all have been subjected to careful standardization, reliability, and/or validity procedures (Beck Depression Inventory and a few others are exceptions) Psychophysiological tests - ◦ Measure physiological response as an indication of psychological problems Includes heart rate, blood pressure, body temperature, galvanic skin response, and muscle contraction ◦ Most popular is the polygraph (lie detector) ◦ Strengths and weaknesses: Require expensive equipment that must be tuned and maintained Can be inaccurate and unreliable Neurological and neuropsychological tests - ◦ Neurological tests directly assess brain function by assessing brain structure and activity Examples: EEG, PET scans, CAT scans, MRI, fMRI ◦ Neuropsychological tests indirectly assess brain function by assessing cognitive, perceptual, and motor functioning Most widely used is the Bender Visual-Motor Gestalt Test ◦ Clinicians often use a battery of tests ◦ Strengths and weaknesses:
Can be very accurate, expensive At best, though, these tests are general screening devices Best when used in a battery of tests, each targeting a specific skill area Intelligence tests - ◦ Designed to indirectly measure intellectual ability ◦ Typically comprised of a series of tests assessing both verbal and nonverbal skills ◦ General score is an intelligence quotient (IQ) Represents the ratio of a person's "mental" age to his or her "chronological" age ◦ Strengths: Are among the most carefully produced of all clinical tests Highly standardized on large groups of subjects Have very high reliability and validity ◦ Weaknesses: Performance can be influenced by nonintelligence factors (e.g., motivation, anxiety, test- taking experience) Tests may contain cultural biases in language or tasks Members of minority groups may have less experience and be less comfortable with these types of tests, influencing their results Anxiety - state of alarm in response to a vague sense of being in danger Anticipatory, something bad is going to happen (future orientated) ◦ Both have the same physiological features - increase in respiration, perspiration, muscle tension, etc. fear - state of immediate alarm in response to a serious, known threat to one's well-being Immediate concern, happening right now (in-the-moment) Freud anxiety -
- Reality Anxiety: most basic form, rooted in reality (ego-based anxiety o Ex: fear of dog bite, fear rising from impending accident o Tension reduction method: removing oneself from harmful situation
- Neurotic anxiety: anxiety arises from unconscious fear that the libidinal impulses of the ID will take control at an in opportune time. This type of anxiety is driven by a fear of punishment that will result from expressing the ID's desires without proper sublimation.
- Moral anxiety: Anxiety which results from fear of violating moral or societal codes, moral anxiety appears as guilt or shame Reality Anxiety - most basic form, rooted in reality (ego-based anxiety o Ex: fear of dog bite, fear rising from impending accident o Tension reduction method: removing oneself from harmful situation Neurotic anxiety - anxiety arises from unconscious fear that the libidinal impulses of the ID will take control at an in opportune time. This type of anxiety is driven by a fear of punishment that will result from expressing the ID's desires without proper sublimation.
- Freudians focus less on fear and more on control of id
- Object-relations therapists attempt to help patients identify and settle early relationship problems GAD: The Humanistic Perspective -
- Theorists propose that GAD, like other psychological disorders, arises when people stop looking at themselves honestly and acceptingly
- Positive, empathetic, genuine
- This view is best illustrated by Carl Rogers's explanation:
- Lack of "unconditional positive regard" in childhood leads to "conditions of worth" (harsh self-standards)
- These threatening self-judgments break through and cause anxiety, setting the stage for GAD to develop
- Practitioners using this "client-centered" approach try to show unconditional positive regard for their clients and to empathize with them
- Despite optimistic case reports, controlled studies have failed to offer strong support
- In addition, only limited support has been found for Rogers's explanation of GAD and other forms of abnormal behavior GAD: The Cognitive Perspective -
- Initially, theorists suggested that GAD is caused by maladaptive assumptions
- Albert Ellis identified basic irrational assumptions:
- It is a dire necessity for an adult human being to be loved or approved of by virtually every significant person in his community
- Everyone needs to love and approve you
- It is awful and catastrophic when things are not the way one would very much like them to be
- No one would die from rejection
- Masters: Albert Ellis, Sigmund Freud, Fritz Pearl
- When these assumptions are applied to everyday life and to more and more events, GAD may develop
- New wave cognitive explanations (people being to worry about worry)
- Worry in effort to become prepared (trying to fend of any sense of criticism)
- In recent years, several new explanations have emerged:
- Metacognitive theory
- Developed by Wells; suggests that the most problematic assumptions in GAD are the individual's worry about worrying (meta-worry)
- Intolerance of uncertainty theory
- Certain individuals consider it unacceptable that negative events may occur, even if the possibility is very small; they worry in an effort to find "correct" solutions
- Avoidance theory
- Developed by Borkovec; holds that worrying serves a "positive" function for those with GAD by reducing unusually high levels of bodily arousal GAD: The Biological Perspective - Biological theorists believe that GAD is caused chiefly by biological factors ◦ Supported by family pedigree studies Biological relatives more likely to have GAD (~15%) than general population (~6%) The closer the relative, the greater the likelihood There is, however, a competing explanation of shared environment
- GABA inactivity
- 1950s - Benzodiazepines (Valium, Xanax) found to reduce anxiety
- Why?
- Neurons have specific receptors (like a lock and key)
- Benzodiazepine receptors ordinarily receive gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA, a common neurotransmitter in the brain)
- GABA carries inhibitory messages; when received, it causes a neuron to stop firing
- In normal fear reactions:
- Key neurons fire more rapidly, creating a general state of excitability experienced as fear or anxiety
- A feedback system is triggered - brain and body activities work to reduce excitability
- Some neurons release GABA to inhibit neuron firing, thereby reducing experience of fear or anxiety
- Malfunctions in the feedback system are believed to cause GAD
- Possible reasons: Too few receptors, ineffective receptors
- Promising (but problematic) explanation
- Recent research has complicated the picture:
- Other neurotransmitters may play important roles in anxiety and GAD
- Issue of causal relationships
- Do physiological events CAUSE anxiety? How can we know? What are alternative explanations?
- Research conducted in recent years indicates that the root of GAD is probably more complicated than a single neurotransmitter Phobias - Persistent fears of specific objects or situations When exposed to the object or situation, sufferers experience immediate fear Most common: Phobias of specific animals or insects, heights, enclosed spaces, thunderstorms, and blood Panic Disorder -
- Panic, an extreme anxiety reaction, can result when a real threat suddenly emerges
- The experience of "panic attacks," however, is different
- Panic attacks are periodic, short bouts of panic that occur suddenly, reach a peak, and pass
- Sufferers often fear they will die, go crazy, or lose control
- Attacks happen in the absence of a real threat
- More than one-quarter of all people have one or more panic attacks at some point in their lives, but some people have panic attacks repeatedly, unexpectedly, and without apparent reason
- Diagnosis: Panic disorder
- Sufferers also experience dysfunctional changes in thinking and behavior as a result of the attacks
- For example, they may worry persistently about having an attack or plan their behavior around possibility of future attack Panic Disorder: The Biological Perspective -
- What biological factors contribute to panic disorder?
- Neurotransmitter at work is norepinephrine
- Irregular in people with panic attacks
Obsessions ◦ Persistent thoughts, ideas, impulses, or images that seem to invade a person's consciousness Can be a form of disassociating (not really listening, somewhere else), preoccupied Can have either just compulsions or obsessions Compulsions ◦ Repetitive and rigid behaviors or mental acts that people feel they must perform to prevent or reduce anxiety Diagnosis is called for when symptoms: ◦ Feel excessive or unreasonable ◦ Cause great distress ◦ Take up much time ◦ Interfere with daily functions Obsessions -
- Thoughts that feel both intrusive and foreign
- Attempts to ignore or resist them trigger anxiety
- Take various forms:
- Wishes
- Impulses
- Images
- Ideas
- Doubts: doubt yourself constantly
- Have common themes:
- Dirt/contamination
- Violence and aggression
- Orderliness
- Religion
- Sexuality
- Omnipotence: so powerful that it comes true Compulsions - Voluntary" behaviors or mental acts
- Feel mandatory/unstoppable
- Most recognize that their behaviors are unreasonable
- Believe, though, that something terrible will occur if they do not perform the compulsive acts
- Performing behaviors reduces anxiety
- ONLY FOR A SHORT TIME!
- Behaviors often develop into rituals
- Common forms/themes:
- Cleaning
- Checking
- Order or balance
- Touching, verbal, and/or counting OCD: The Psychodynamic Perspective -
- Anxiety disorders develop when children come to fear their id impulses and use ego defense mechanisms to lessen their anxiety
- Battle between id and ego are not happening in the unconscious
- OCD differs from other anxiety disorders in that the "battle" is not unconscious; it is played out in overt thoughts and actions
- Id impulses = obsessive thoughts
- Ego defenses = counter-thoughts or compulsive actions
- A woman who keeps imagining her mother lying broken and bleeding may counter those thought with repeated safety checks.
- The battle between the id and the ego
- Three ego defense mechanisms are common:
- Isolation: Disown disturbing thoughts
- Undoing: Perform acts to "cancel out" thoughts
- Reaction formation: Take on lifestyle in contrast to unacceptable impulses
- Freud believed that OCD was related to the anal stage of development
- Period of intense conflict between id and ego OCD: The Behavioral Perspective -
- In a fearful situation, they happen to perform a particular act (washing hands)
- When the threat lifts, they associate the improvement with the random act
- After repeated associations, they believe the compulsion is changing the situation
- Bringing luck, warding away evil, etc.
- The act becomes a key method to avoiding or reducing anxiety
- Behavioral therapy
- Exposure and response prevention (ERP)
- Clients are repeatedly exposed to anxiety-provoking stimuli and are told to resist performing the compulsions
- Therapists often model the behavior while the client watches
- Homework is an important component OCD: The Cognitive Perspective - Cognitive theorists begin by pointing out that everyone has repetitive, unwanted, and intrusive thoughts ◦ People with OCD blame themselves for normal (although repetitive and intrusive) thoughts and expect that terrible things will happen as a result To avoid such negative outcomes, they attempt to "neutralize" their thoughts with actions (or other thoughts) Neutralizing thoughts/actions may include: ◦ Seeking reassurance ◦ Thinking "good" thoughts ◦ Washing ◦ Checking When a neutralizing action reduces anxiety, it is reinforced ◦ Client becomes more convinced that the thoughts are dangerous ◦ As fear of thoughts increases, the number of thoughts increases If everyone has intrusive thoughts, why do only some people develop OCD? ◦ People with OCD tend to: Be more depressed than others Have exceptionally high standards of conduct and morality Believe thoughts are equal to actions and are capable of bringing harm Believe that they can, and should, have perfect control over their thoughts and behaviors Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
