Helps to: - Predict disorder's future course - Suggest appropriate treatment - Prompt research into its causes Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) Classifying Disorders & Labeling People Shaping Humanistic theory

Classifying Disorders & Labeling People

AP Psych- Unit 13 Abnormal Flashcards

Study of the etiology (causes), diagnosis and treatment of mental illness

Deviant: differ from normal behavior Distressing: upsetting to the individual Dysfunctional: maladaptive; interfere with daily life Dangerous: threat or harmful to self or others

the concept that diseases, in this case psychological disorders, have physical causes that can be diagnosed, treated, and, in most cases, cured, often through treatment in a hospital

Helps to: - Predict disorder's future course - Suggest appropriate treatment - Prompt research into its causes

Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders

Excessive worry (6 months or more) AND worrying is very challenging to control - Edginess or restlessness - Muscle aches or soreness - Impaired concentration - Irritability - More fatigued - Difficulty sleeping

one or more panic attack in a month, followed by persistent concern about additional attacks

abrupt surge of intense fear or anxiety that reaches a peak within minutes and accompanied by 4 or more "symptoms"

fear or avoidance of public situations in which escape might be difficult

anxiety disorder marked by a persistent, irrational fear and avoidance of a specific object, activity or situation

Disorder characterized by unwanted repetitive thoughts (obsessions), actions (compulsions), or both

Repeated and unsuccessful attempts to control behavior - Condition is distressing - Interferes with daily life (dysfunctional) - Symptoms are experienced for at least 1 hour per day

Checking - Contamination - Symmetry and ordering

Develops after traumatic events (combat, crime, accident, natural disaster, abuse) - Normally lasts more than 30 days - Characterized by: intrusive memories of event, emotional and/or social withdrawal, nightmares, insomnia, numbness of feeling, loss of control over anger and aggressive behavior

"Shell shock" and WWI - Documentation and research after Vietnam War

Affective: anhedonia (inability to experience pleasure), emotional numbness Behavioral: hypervigilance, passivity, nightmares, exaggerated startle response Cognitive: intrusive memories, inability to concentrate, hyper-arousal, flashbacks Somatic: back pain, headaches, stomach-ache and digestive problems, insomnia, regression in some children, losing already acquired developmental skills (speech, toilet training)

Same symptoms as PTSD, but occur for a month of less after a traumatic event

Freud suggested that we repress painful and intolerable ideas, feelings, and thoughts. Sometimes this mental energy "leaks out" in symptoms such as anxious handwashing

our fear responses become linked with formerly neutral objects and events - Recall: Little Albert

we learn what others fear - Ex: Lab-monkeys and snakes

develop fear of similar events from a single experience

maintain learned fears and anxieties

Our thoughts, memories, interpretations and expectations influences feelings of anxiety - People with anxiety disorders are hypervigilant Attend more to threatening stimuli Interpret unclear stimuli as threatening Remember threatening events more often

Genes - Epigenetics - Genes might influence neurotransmitters that regulate brain's alarm centers The Brain - More sensitive limbic system - Higher-than-normal activity in amygdala (PTSD) Natural Selection - Most phobias are to "evolutionarily relevant" stimuli - Easy to learn fears v. not easily learned

Characterized by disturbances or extremes in emotion and vary in terms of duration and severity

Major Depressive Disorder Persistent Depressive Disorder (Dysthymia) Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder Seasonal Affective Disorder

Extreme sadness Loss of interest or pleasure Sleep or eating disturbances Loss of energy Movement disturbances Lack of concentration Guilt Recurrent thoughts of death or suicide

mental state of elevated mood and increased activity, characterized by hyperactivity, euphoria, decreased need for sleep, talkativeness, inflated self-esteem, risky behaviors, "flight of ideas" Suicide risk is 15x greater than general population

Negative thoughts, maladaptive beliefs, negative interpretations

learned helplessness

Mental health: depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, bipolar, conduct disorder, substance use Serious health problems (traumatic brain injury, pain)

Access to lethal means Prolonged stress, bullying, relationship problems, unemployment Stressful life events (divorce, loss, rejection, financial crisis, life transitions)

Previous suicide attempts Family history of suicide Childhood abuse, neglect or trauma

Why? Relief from negative thoughts through distraction of pain Attract attention and get help Relive guilt by punishing selves Fit in with peer group

group of disorders marked by irrational ideas, distorted perceptions, and a loss of contact with reality

a disorder characterized by delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech, and/or diminished, inappropriate emotional expression

Delusions False beliefs Hallucinations False perceptions Disorganized thought and speech "Word salad" Abnormal movement = Catatonia Negative symptoms (positive v. negative: present v. absent)

Genetic component Excess dopamine Brain activity Low activity frontal lobes More activity thalamus and amygdala during hallucinations Brain shrinkage Prenatal factors Mid-pregnancy viral infection Environmental risk factors

Distressing somatic symptoms plus abnormal thoughts, feelings, and behaviors in response

altered voluntary motor or sensory function that can't be explained through neurological or medical conditions

preoccupation with having or acquiring a serious illness; somatic symptoms are not present or are mild, but there is a high anxiety about health concerns [formerly hypochondriasis]

falsification of symptoms; or causing an injury or disease [formerly Munchausen's Syndrome]

controversial, rare disorders in which conscious awareness becomes separated (dissociated) from previous memories, thoughts and feelings

"multiple personalities" Part of normal capacity for personality shifts Very short and localized history Created/suggested by therapists A real coping mechanism for anxiety A PTSD-umbrella disorder

Antisocial personality disorder Borderline personality disorder Histrionic personality disorder Narcissistic personality disorder

Maintains starvation diet despite being significantly (15% or more) underweight Two forms: Restriction - low-calorie diet, excessive exercise Binge/purging - episodes of binge-eating combined with restriction behavior

Person alternates binge-eating with purging (vomiting or laxative use) or fasting. Maintains apparently normal weight.

Preoccupation with one or more perceived defects or flaws in physical appearance that are not observable to others

Affective: feelings of self-hatred and unworthiness, fear of getting "fat," depression Behavioral: excessive dieting and fasting, compulsive exercise, calorie counting, insomnia, layering of clothes, social withdrawal Cognitive: perfectionism, denial that there is a problem, difficulty in thinking clearly, potential cognitive deficits due to malnutrition Somatic: 85% or less of normal body weight, low blood pressure, lowered resistance to infection, dehydration, reduced body temperature, bloating, amenorrhea, osteoporosis and fatigue

we learn behavior by observing behavior of others Patterns in society, especially with exposure to media Patterns within families

(Kirmayer): cultures create socially acceptable sets of symptoms for mental distress Ex: Anorexia is a culturally appropriate response to stress

Dorothea Dix and Philippe Pinel

treatment involving psychological techniques; interactions between trained therapist and someone seeking to overcome psychological difficulties or achieve personal growth

talk therapies that uses techniques from various perspectives

medications or procedures that act directly on person's physiology Includes: antidepressants, electroconvulsive shock therapy, deep-brain stimulation

First formal psychotherapy - developed by Freud: Bring repressed feelings into conscious awareness where patient can deal with them Release energy previously consumed in id-ego-superego conflicts -- alleviates anxiety Criticisms= Takes a lot of time and money, No research to support

patient lies on couch and speaks about whatever comes to mind In editing thoughts - reveals resistance, which therapist analyzes and provides interpretation Patient eventually opens up and reveals private thoughts, developing positive or negative feelings (transference) towards the therapist

Influenced by Psychoanalytic: Explore defended-against thoughts and feelings Focus on important relationships Try to understand origin of current difficulties (patterns of behavior and roots) Gain insight into unconscious dynamics from life experiences

Humanistic and psychodynamic therapies Aim to improve psychological functioning by increasing a person's awareness of underlying motives and defenses

Focus in on promoting growth, not curing illness Take immediate responsibility for feelings and actions (not uncovering hidden determinants) Conscious thoughts more important than unconscious Present and future are more important than the past

Type of non directive therapy: client leads discussion, therapist listens without judging or interpreting, and refrains from directing client toward certain insights Assumes people possess resources for own growth Therapist uses active listening: echoes, restates and clarifies Therapist should demonstrate unconditional positive regard: acceptance, genuineness, empathy

Acknowledges that self-awareness of problems does not necessarily solve them Ex: aware of anxiety does not make it go away Applies learning principles to elimination of unwanted behaviors

behavior therapy procedures that use classical conditioning to evoke new responses to stimuli that are triggering unwanted behaviors

Treat anxieties by exposing people (in imaginary or actual situations) to the things they fear and avoid Mary Cover Jones Joseph Wolpe Virtual reality exposure therapy

pair pleasant, relaxed state with gradually increasing anxiety-triggering stimuli

Associates an unpleasant state (such as nausea) with an unwanted behavior; helps you learn what you should not do But -- cognition influences learning

reinforce behaviors that are considered desirable and fail to reinforce, or punish, behaviors considered undesirable

reward closer and closer approximations of desired behavior

an operant conditioning procedure in which people earn a token of some sort for exhibiting a desired behavior and can later exchange the tokens for various privileges or treats

Teaches people adaptive ways of thinking and acting based on assumption that thoughts intervene between events and our emotional reactions

Alber Ellis Change people's thinking by revealing "absurdity" of their self-defeating ideas

Aaron Beck (1979) suggests that depressed patients believe they can never be happy and associate minor failings as major causes for depression Automatic negative thoughts Irrational thinking

Combine the reversal of self-defeated thinking with efforts to modify behavior. Aims to alter the way people act (behavior therapy) and alter the way they think (cognitive therapy)

Validity testing - client defends thoughts and beliefs with concrete evidence (use socratic questioning) Cognitive rehearsal - imagine difficult situations and then practice coping with the problem Behavioral experiments - try different behaviors on different days and compare how each felt Thought records - keep systematic record of thoughts and situations relevant to specific belief Pleasant activity scheduling

Train people to restructure thinking in stressful situations

Benefits: Saves therapists' time and clients' money Offers social laboratory for exploring social behaviors and developing social skills Enables people to see that others share their problems Provides feedback as clients try out new ways of behaving

Assumes that no person is an island -- we live and grow in relation to other people Helps to improve communication, discover new ways of preventing or resolving conflicts

Helpful for stigmatized or hard to discuss illnesses (ex: AIDS, anorexia, alcohol use disorder) Popularity of these groups may reflect longing for community and connectedness

Previously called "electric shock therapy" For severely depressed patients who are "treatment-resistant" Person is anesthetized, send electric currents through brain Brief, controlled seizures Sides effects: memory loss, confusion (minutes or hours), muscle pain

Person is awake, targeted current, does not induce full seizure Fewer side effects

lobotomy

Does the patient sense improvement? Does the therapist feel the patient has improved? How do friends and family feel about the patient's improvement?

May overestimate its effectiveness. Skeptics claim: Clients enter therapy in crisis -- but crisis may subside over time (regression to normalcy or spontaneous remission) Confirmation bias - may need to believe it was worth the effort Generally speak kindly of therapists

Only see failures of other therapists Likely to testify the efficacy of their therapy regardless of outcome Interpret "relapses" as new psychological problem

Randomized clinical trials Meta-analysis Findings: Untreated often improve, but treated patients were 80% better than untreated patients Psychotherapy is cost-effective

Hope New perspectives Empathetic, trusting, caring relationships

AP Psych- Unit 13 Abnormal

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