1. Abnormal Psychology A.K.A. Psychological Disorders
A “harmful dysfunction” in which behavior is judged to be atypical, disturbing, maladaptive and unjustifiable.

2. Psychological Disorder
A “harmful dysfunction” in which behavior is judged to be:
atypical--be unusual to the vast majority of people in that culture
disturbing--varies with time and culture
maladaptive--harmful
unjustifiable--be irrational; not make sense to the average person

3. Early Theories of Psychological Disorders
Afflicted people were possessed by evil spirits.
Movements of sun or moon
*lunacy = full moon

4. Early Theories In some cases trephening was used:
Music or singing was often used to chase away spirits.
In some cases trephening was used:
Cutting a hole in the head of the afflicted to let out the evil spirit

5. Ancient Treatments
Another theory was to make the body extremely uncomfortable
Ancient treatments included: exorcism, caged like animals, beaten, burned, castrated, mutilated, blood replaced with animal’s blood

6. History of Mental Disorders
In the 1800’s, disturbed people were no longer thought of as madmen, but as mentally ill.
They were first put in hospitals.
Did this mean better treatment?

7. Early Mental Hospitals
They were nothing more than barbaric prisons.
The patients were chained and locked away.
Some hospitals even charged admission for the public to see the “crazies”, just like a zoo.

8. Philippe Pinel
French doctor who was the first to take the chains off and declare that these people are sick and “a cure must be found!!!”

9. Perspectives and Disorders
Psychological School/Perspective
Cause of the Disorder
Psychoanalytic/Psychodynamic
Internal, unconscious drives
Humanistic
Failure to strive to one’s potential or being out of touch with one’s feelings.
Behavioral
Reinforcement history, the environment.
Cognitive
Irrational, dysfunctional thoughts or ways of thinking.
Sociocultural
Dysfunctional Society
Biomedical/Neuroscience
Organic problems, biochemical imbalances, genetic predispositions.
***Most psychologists do not pick just one perspective for their practice but pick a combination of them; this is called being eclectic.

10. Current Perspectives
Medical Perspective: psychological disorders are sicknesses and can be diagnosed, treated and cured.
concept that diseases have physical causes
assumes that these “mental” illnesses can be diagnosed on the basis of their symptoms and cured through therapy, which may include treatment in a psychiatric hospital

11. Current Perspectives
Bio-Psycho-Social Perspective: assumes biological, psychological and sociocultural factors combine and interact causing psychological disorders
Used to be called Diathesis-Stress Model: diathesis meaning predisposition; stress meaning environment

12. Bio-Psycho-Social Perspective:

13. Sane or Insane?
Insane is a legal term to benchmark whether or not a person is capable of committing a crime.  Psychologists almost never use that term (unless they are getting paid a lot of money to testify in court).

14. DSM V
Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders: the big book of disorders.
DSM will classify disorders and describe the symptoms.
DSM will NOT explain the causes or possible cures.

15. Two Major Classifications in the DSM
Neurotic Disorders
Psychotic Disorders
Distressing but one can still function in society and act rationally.
Person loses contact with reality, experiences distorted perceptions.
John Wayne Gacy

17. Anxiety Disorders
a group of conditions where the primary symptoms are anxiety or defenses against anxiety.
the patient fears something awful will happen to them.
They are in a state of intense apprehension, uneasiness, uncertainty, or fear.

18. Generalized Anxiety Disorder GAD
An anxiety disorder in which a person is continuously tense, apprehensive and in a state of autonomic nervous system arousal.
The patient is constantly tense and worried, feels inadequate, is oversensitive, can’t concentrate and suffers from insomnia.

19. Panic Disorder
An anxiety disorder marked by a minutes-long episode of intense dread in which a person experiences terror and accompanying chest pain, choking and other frightening sensations.
Can cause secondary disorders, such as agoraphobia.

20. Phobias A person experiences sudden episodes of intense dread
Persistent, irrational fear of a specific object or situation

21. Phobias
Common and uncommon fears

22. Some Unusual Phobias Ailurophobia - fear of cats
Algobphobia - fear of pain
Anthropophobia - fear of men
Monophobia - fear of being alone
Pyrophobia - fear of fire

23. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
An anxiety disorder characterized by unwanted repetitive thoughts (obsessions) and/or actions (compulsions).

24. Common Examples of OCD Common Compulsions: Common Obsessions:
Contamination fears of germs, dirt, etc.
Washing
Imagining having harmed self or others
Repeating
Imagining losing control of aggressive urges
Checking
Intrusive sexual thoughts or urges
Touching
Excessive religious or moral doubt
Counting
Forbidden thoughts
Ordering/arranging
A need to have things "just so"
Hoarding or saving
A need to tell, ask, confess
Praying

25. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

26. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

27. Explanations for Anxiety Disorders
1st – You learn them through conditioning (and reinforcement helps maintain them) 2nd – Evolution/Natural Selection Theory – We are biologically prepared to fear threats 3rd – Genes – Some people seem genetically predisposed to fears and anxiety (separated identical twin study – they both developed claustrophobia) 4th – Physiology: The brain – Fear learning experiences can traumatize the brain by developing fear circuits within the amygdala (some antidepressant drugs can dampen this fear-circuit activity)