Psychology in Action (8e) PowerPoint  Lecture Notes Presentation Chapter 14: Psychological Disorders 1

What characteristics mark psychological well-being? 1. Self-acceptance. 2. Positive relations with others. 3. Autonomy. 4. Environmental mastery. 5. Purpose in life. 6. Personal growth. 2

Psychopathology Psychological disorders consist of deviant, distressful, and dysfunctional behavior patterns. Mental health workers view psychological disorders as persistently harmful thoughts, feelings, and actions. Standards of deviant behavior vary by culture, context, and even time. For example, children once regarded as fidgety, distractible, and impulsive are now being diagnosed with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). 3

Figure 16.1 The biopsychosocial approach to psychological disorders Myers: Psychology, Eighth Edition Copyright © 2007 by Worth Publishers 4

Studying Psychological Disorders Abnormal Behavior: patterns of emotion, thought, and action considered pathological for one or more of four reasons: statistical infrequency disability or dysfunction personal distress violation of norms 5

Studying Psychological Disorders: Four Criteria for Abnormal Behavior 6

Culture-General Symptoms (shared symptoms across cultures) 7

Culture-Bound Symptoms (unique symptoms that differ across cultures) 8

Studying Psychological Disorders (Continued) Historical perspectives:  In ancient times, people believed demons were the cause of abnormal behavior.  In the 1790s, Pinel and others began to emphasize disease and physical illness, which later developed into the medical model. 9

Studying Psychological Disorders (Continued) Modern psychology includes seven major perspectives on abnormal behavior. 10

Studying Psychological Disorders: Classifying Abnormal Behavior The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR): provides detailed descriptions of symptoms contains over 200 diagnostic categories grouped into 17 major categories and five dimensions (or axes) 11

Studying Psychological Disorders: Classifying Abnormal Behavior (Cont.) Five Axes of DSM-IV-TR (guidelines for making decisions about symptoms) Axis I (current clinical disorders) Axis II (personality disorders and mental retardation) Axis III (general medical information) Axis IV (psychosocial and environmental problems) Axis V (global assessment of functioning) 12

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Diagnostic Labels Critics point out that labels can create preconceptions that bias our perceptions of people’s past and present behavior and unfairly stigmatize these individuals. Labels can also serve as self-fulfilling prophecies. 14

Diagnostic Labels Diagnostic labels help not only to describe a psychological disorder but to predict its future course, to imply appropriate treatment, and to stimulate research into its possible causes. The label of “insanity” raises moral and ethical questions about how people should treat people who have disorders and have committed crimes. 15

Anxiety Disorders Anxiety Disorder (characterized by unrealistic, irrational fear)  Four Major Anxiety Disorders 1. Generalized Anxiety Disorder: persistent, uncontrollable, and free-floating anxiety 2. Panic Disorder: sudden and inexplicable panic attacks 16

Anxiety Disorders (Continued) 3. Phobia: intense, irrational fear of a specific object or situation 4. Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD): intrusive, repetitive fearful thoughts (obsessions), urges to perform repetitive, ritualistic behaviors (compulsions), or both 17

Anxiety Disorders (Continued) Explanations of Anxiety Disorders:  Psychological--faulty cognitions, maladaptive learning  Biological--evolution, genetics, brain functioning, biochemistry  Sociocultural—environ- mental stressors, cultural socialization 18

Mood Disorders Mood Disorders (characterized by extreme disturbances in emotional states) Two Main Types of Mood Disorders: Major Depressive Disorder (long-lasting depressed mood that interferes with the ability to function, feel pleasure, or maintain interest in life) Bipolar Disorder (repeated episodes of mania and depression) 19

Mood Disorders (Continued) Using this hypothetical graph, note how major depressive disorders differ from bipolar disorders. 20

Mood Disorders (Continued) Explanations of Mood Disorders:  Biological--brain functioning, neurotransmitter imbalances, genetics, evolution  Psychosocial--environmental stressors, disturbed interpersonal relationships, faulty thinking, poor self- concept, learned helplessness, faulty attributions 21

Mood Disorders (Continued) SocialPsychological Biological Gender and Cultural Diversity:  Culture-general symptoms for depression (e.g., sad affect, lack of energy)  Women more likely to suffer depressive symptoms. Why? Combination of biological, psychological, and social forces (biopsychosocial model) 22

SUICIDE Suicide rates are higher for Whites than Blacks; Higher for MEN than Women More likely to occur when the depression is LIFTING, not when depression is at its worse Only a FEW who talk about suicide will attempt it; only a FEW who attempt will succeed. 23

Edwin Schneidman’s 10 common characteristics of suicidal people 1. Unendurable psychological pain. (Suicide is not an act of hostility or revenge but a way of switching off unendurable and inescapable pain. If you reduce their level of suffering, even just a little, suicidal people will choose to live.) 2. Frustrated psychological needs. (Needs for security, achievement, trust, and friendship are among the important ones not being met. Address these psychological needs and the suicide will not occur. Although there are pointless deaths, there is never a “needless” suicide.) 3. The search for a solution. (Suicide is never done without purpose. It is a way out of a problem or crisis and seems to be the only answer to the question: “How do I get out of this?”) 4. An attempt to end consciousness. (Suicide is both a movement away from pain and a movement to end consciousness. The goal is to stop awareness of a painful existence.) 5. Helplessness and hopelessness. (Underneath all the shame, guilt, and loss of effectiveness is a sense of powerlessness. There is the feeling that no one can help and nothing can be done except to commit suicide.) 24

Edwin Schneidman’s 10 common characteristics of suicidal people 6. Constriction of options. (Instead of looking for a variety of answers, suicidal people see only two alternatives: a total solution or a total cessation. All other options have been driven out by pain. The goal of the rescuer should be to broaden the suicidal person’s perspective.) 7. Ambivalence. (Some ambivalence is normal, but for the suicidal person ambivalence is only between life and death. In the typical case, a person cuts his or her own throat and calls for help simultaneously. The rescuer can use this ambivalence to shift the inner debate to the side of life.) 8. Communication of intent. (About 80 percent of suicidal people give family and friends clear clues about their intention to kill themselves.) 9. Departure. (Quitting a job, running away from home, leaving a spouse are all departures, but suicide is the ultimate escape. It is a plan for a radical, permanent change of scene.) 10. Lifelong coping patterns. (To spot potential suicides, one must look to earlier episodes of disturbance, to the person’s style of enduring pain, and to a general tendency toward “either/or” thinking. Often, there has been a style of problem solving that might be characterized as “cut and run.”) 25

Schizophrenia Schizophrenia (group of psychotic disorders) Five areas of major disturbance: 1. Perception (hallucinations) 2. Language (word salad, neologisms) 3. Thoughts (psychosis, delusions) 4. Emotion (exaggerated or flat affect) 5. Behavior [unusual actions (e.g., catalepsy, waxy flexibility)] 26

Schizophrenia (Continued) 27

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Schizophrenia (Continued) Explanations of Schizophrenia:  Biological--genetic predisposition, disruptions in neurotransmitters, brain abnormalities  Psychosocial--stress, disturbed family communication 29

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Schizophrenia (Continued) Gender and Cultural Diversity: Numerous culturally general symptoms, but significant differences exist in: prevalence form onset prognosis 31

Other Disorders Substance-related disorder (abuse of, or dependence on, a mood- or behavior-altering drug) Two general groups:  Substance abuse (interferes with social or occupational functioning)  Substance dependence (shows physical reactions, such as tolerance and withdrawal) 32

Other Disorders: Substance-Related Disorder 33

Other Disorders (Continued) People with substance-related disorders also commonly suffer from other psychological disorders, a condition known as comorbidity. 34

Other Disorders (Continued) Dissociative Disorders: Splitting apart (dis- association) of experience from memory or consciousness Types of Dissociative Disorders:  Dissociative Amnesia  Dissociative Fugue  Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) 35

Other Disorders (Continued) Best known and most severe dissociative disorder:  Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID): presence of two or more distinct personality systems in the same person at different times (previously known as multiple personality disorder) 36

Other Disorders (Continued) Personality Disorder: inflexible, maladaptive personality traits that cause significant impairment of social and occupational functioning Types of personality disorders:  Antisocial Personality Disorder  Borderline Personality Disorder 37

Antisocial Personality Disorder: profound disregard for, and violation of, the rights of others Key Traits: egocentrism, lack of conscience, impulsive behavior, and superficial charm Other Disorders (Continued) 38

Other Disorders (Continued) Explanations of Antisocial Personality Disorder: Biological--genetic predisposition, abnormal brain functioning Psychological—abusive parenting, inappropriate modeling 39

Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD): impulsivity and instability in mood, relationships, and self-image Explanations of BPD: Psychological--childhood history of neglect, emotional deprivation, abuse Biological--genetic inheritance, impaired brain functioning Other Disorders (Continued) 40