Chapter 13: Treatment of Psychological Disorders Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display.

Treatment Psychotherapy –Treatment in which a trained professional – a therapist – uses psychological techniques to help someone overcome psychological difficulties and disorders Biomedical therapy –Relies on drugs and other medical procedures to improve psychological functioning

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Psychodynamic Approaches to Therapy Based on the premise that the primary sources of abnormal behavior are unresolved conflicts and the possibility that unacceptable unconscious impulses may enter consciousness Psychoanalysis –Frequent sessions that lasts for many years Free association Dream interpretation Resistance Transference

Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Behavioral Approaches to Therapy Building on the basic processes of learning (classical and operant conditioning) poses that abnormal and normal behavior are learned

Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Classical Conditioning Approaches to Treatment Aversive conditioning –Create unpleasant reactions to stimuli that an individual previously enjoyed Systematic desensitization –Gradual exposure to an anxiety-producing stimulus is paired with relaxation in order to extinguish the response of anxiety

Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Operant Conditioning Techniques to Treatment Token system –Person rewarded for desired behavior with a token that is later exchanged for something they want Contingency contracting –Written agreement that outlines behavioral goals and positive consequences if achieved Observational learning –Learning by watching others’ behavior

Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Cognitive Approaches to Therapy Cognitive-behavioral approach –Assumption that anxiety, depression, and negative emotions develop from maladaptive thought processes

Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Rational-Emotive Behavior Therapy Attempts to restructure a person’s belief system into a more realistic, rational, and logical set of views

Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Cognitive Therapy Psychotherapy developed by Beck to change people’s illogical thoughts about themselves and the world Less confrontational and challenging than RET

Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Humanistic Approach to Therapy Based on the assumption that people control their own behavior, can make choices about the kinds of life they want to lead, and are responsible for solving their own difficulties

Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Humanistic Approaches to Therapy Client-centered therapy –Goal is to enable people to reach their potential for self-actualization –Unconditional positive regard Gestalt therapy –Holds the ultimate goal for the client to experience life in a more unified and complete way

Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Therapeutic Modalities Group therapy –Several unrelated people meet with a therapist to discuss some aspect of their psychological functioning Family therapy –Involves two or more members of the same family, one (or more) of whose problems led to treatment

Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Evaluating Psychotherapy For most people, psychotherapy is effective Doesn’t work for everyone Certain specific types of treatments are somewhat, although not invariably, better for specific types of problems No single form of therapy works best Spontaneous remission –Recovery without treatment Eclecticism

Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Biomedical Therapy: Biological Approaches to Treatment Therapy that focuses on brain chemistry and other neurological factors Drug therapy –Control of psychological disorders through drugs

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Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) Procedure in which an electric current of 70 to 150 volts is briefly administered to a patient’s head, causing a loss of consciousness and often seizures

Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Psychosurgery Brain surgery in which the object is to reduce symptoms of mental disorder – used only rarely today Prefrontal lobotomy –Surgically destroying or removing parts of a patient’s frontal lobes that were thought to control emotionality Cingulotomy –Used with rare cases of OCD

Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Community Psychology: Focus on Prevention Geared toward preventing or minimizing the incidence of psychological disorders Deinstitutionalization –Movement of former mental patients out of institutions and into the community