UNDERSTANDING PATHOLOGICAL BEHAVIOR MENTAL ILLNESS UNDERSTANDING PATHOLOGICAL BEHAVIOR

What is Mental Illness? Deviance Departure from cultural norms

Culture & Pathology Relativistic View Pancultural View There is no standards of normality Pancultural View Basic standards of normality are cross-cultural

What is Mental Illness? Deviance Departure from cultural norms Maladaptive Behavior (a.k.a., functional impairment) Everyday behavior is impaired Personal Distress Subjective report of pain

Clinical Psychology: The New Look Medical Model: Proposes that it is useful to think of abnormal behavior as a disease

The Medical Model Diagnosis Distinguishing one illness from another What is it?

Diagnosis Determining whether the individual’s problem meets all the criteria for a psychological disorder

The Medical Model Diagnosis Distinguishing one illness from another What is it? Etiology Causation & developmental history of illness Where did it come from? Prognosis A forecast about the probable course of an illness Where is it going?

Myths of Mental Illness Disorders are incurable People with mental illness are violent People with mental illness behave bizarrely

Who is mentally ill? Prevalence The percentage of a population that exhibits a disorder during a specified time period Substance Abuse Anxiety Mood

Psychology & the Law Insanity A legal status indicating that a person cannot be held responsible for his or her actions because of mental illness M’naghten Rule Insanity exists when a mental disorder makes a person unable to distinguish right from wrong

Psychology & The Law Involuntary Commitment Hospitalized in psychiatric facilities against one’s will Temporary (24-72 hrs) vs. Long-term (6 mos.) Dangerous to themselves Dangerous to others Need treatment (severe disorientation)