Psychological Disorders Chapter 15

Psychological Disorders Mental processes or behavior patterns that cause emotional distress and/or substantial impairment in functioning

What is abnormal? Human behavior lies along a continuum, from well adjusted to mal-adjusted Where along the continuum does behavior become abnormal?

Criteria Is the behavior considered strange within the person’s own culture? Does the behavior cause personal distress? Is the behavior maladaptive? Is the person a danger to himself or to herself? Is the person legally responsible for his or her acts?

Prevalence of psychological Disorders 22% of Americans are diagnosed with a psychological disorder annually in the US The lifetime risk of being diagnosed with a psychological disorder is 50%

Insanity A legal, not psychological term Means an individual is not legally responsible for his/her behavior due to a psychiatric illness or some other temporary or permanent mental condition

DSM-IV/TR Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Lists the criteria for assigning various diagnoses All psychological disorders are organized into various categories

ANXIETY DISORDERS

Generalized Anxiety Disorder Characterized by chronic worry that is so severe that it interferes with daily functioning

Panic Disorder Characterized by recurrent, unpredictable panic attacks of overwhelming anxiety, fear, or terror During these attacks people experience palpitations, trembling, shaking, choking or smothering sensations, and the feeling that they are going to die or lose their sanity

Phobias There are three categories of phobias –Agoraphobia –Social phobia –Specific phobia

Agoraphobia Fear of being in situations where escape is impossible or help is not available in case of incapacitating anxiety

Social Phobia Fear of social situations where one might be embarrassed or humiliated by appearing clumsy or incompetent

Specific Phobia A marked fear of a specific object or situation and a catchall for all other phobias

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders Characterized by obsessions (persistent, recurring, involuntary thoughts, images, or impulses that cause great distress) and/or compulsions (persistent, irresistible, irrational urges to perform an act or ritual repeatedly)

MOOD DISORDERS

A major depressive disorder characterized by feelings of great sadness, despair, guilt, worthlessness, hopelessness, and, in extreme cases, suicidal intentions

Lifetime rates of depression vary widely from one culture to another Women are more likely to suffer from depression than men all over the world

Bipolar Disorder Mood disorder in which a person suffers from manic episodes (periods of extreme elation, euphoria, and hyperactivity) alternating with major depression

Proposed causes of mood disorders 1. genetic predisposition 2. imbalance in neurotransmitters norepinephrine and serotonin 3. tendency to turn hostility and resentment inward rather than expressing it 4. distorted and negative views of oneself, the world, the future 5. stress

Heredity is a major cause of mood disorders. Negative thought patterns also contribute to these disorders. Major life stresses may trigger a mood disorder.

Suicide Depression is linked to suicide along with other disorders. Elderly, white males highest rate of suicide- perhaps due to poor health or loneliness Women more likely to attempt, men more likely to be successful Asian Americans have the lowest rate of all US ethnic groups

SCHIZOPHRENIA Positive symptoms: abnormal behaviors and characteristics- hallucinations, disorganized thinking, delusions, disorganized speech, bizarre behavior, inappropriate affect Negative symptoms: social withdrawal, apathy, loss of motivation, very limited speech, slowed movements, flat affect, poor hygiene and grooming

4 types of schizophrenia Paranoid Disorganized Catatonic Undifferentiated

Risk factors Genetic predisposition Stress in people who are predisposed Excessive dopamine activity in the brain

SOMATOFORM AND DISSOCIATIVE DISORDERS Involve bodily symptoms that cannot be identified as any of the known medical conditions

Hypochondriasis Persistent fear that bodily symptoms are the signs of some serious disease

Conversion disorder Loss of motor or sensory functioning in some part of the body, such as paralysis or blindness

Dissociative amnesia Loss of memory for limited periods of their life or for their entire personal identity

Dissociative fugue disorder People forget their entire identity, travel away form home, may assume new identity somewhere else

Dissociative identity disorder Multiple personality Two or more distinct, unique personalities occur in the same person, each taking over at different times Most patients are female and victims of early, severe physical and/or sexual abuse

Other Psychological Disorders Gender identity disorder: people feel their psychological gender identity is different form that which is typically associated with their biological sex Paraphilias:sufferers have recurrent sexual urges, fantasies, and behaviors that involve children, other non-consenting partner, or non- human objects Sexual dysfunction: a problem with sexual desire, arousal, orgasm

3 Clusters of Personality Disorders People with personality disorders have long-standing, inflexible, maladaptive patterns of behavior that cause problems in social relationships at work Often cause personal distress Many are unable to change and always blame others for their problems

continued Cluster A: characterized by odd behavior Cluster B: erratic emotions and overly dramatic behavior Cluster C: disorders associated with extreme levels of fearfulness and anxiety