Download Overview and Methodology

Overview and Methodology
Overview
I. What is Abnormal?
A. Abnormal: not normal.
B. Normal: that which adheres to a norm, either naturally or by
way of social influence.
C. Abnormal Psychology: the sub-discipline of psychology
that examines persistent unhealthy mental processes and
behaviors, thereby identifying and differentiating various
psychological disorders, dysfunctions, etc. Diagnoses are
typically made when the problem interferes with one’s ability to
function effectively in daily life.
D. Psychological Disorder: a pattern of abnormal behavior
that is associated with states of significant emotional distress,
such as anxiety or depression, or with impaired behavior or
ability to function, such as difficulty holding a job or even
distinguishing reality from fantasy.
E. Criteria for Determining Abnormality…
1) Unusualness
2) Social deviance
3) Faulty perceptions or interpretations of reality
4) Significant personal distress
5) Maladaptive or self-defeating behavior
6) Dangerousness
F. Variations in abnormality across time and cultures
G. Rosenhan's 1973 study "On Being Sane in Insane Places"
II. Historical Interpretations of Abnormal
Behavior
A. Trephination: a harsh, prehistoric
practice of cutting a hole in a person’s
skull, possibly in an attempt to release
demons.
B. Hippocrates’ sense of humors…
1) Phlegm: an excess causes lethargy or sluggishness.
2) Blood: an excess makes one happy, social, and confident.
3) Black Bile: an excess causes depression or melancholia.
4) Yellow Bile: an excess makes one argumentative, agitated, and
short-tempered.
C. Exorcism
D. Witches and Witchcraft
1) The Water-Float Test: a “test”
medieval authorities used to detect
possession and witchcraft. If you
floated above the waterline, it was
deemed a sign of impurity and so you
were killed. If you drowned, it cleared
away any suspicions that you were a
witch or possessed.
III. Modern Interpretations of Abnormal
Behavior
I. The Psychological Perspective
A. Psychodynamic Models
1) Psychodynamic Theory: relates personality and abnormal behavior
to the interplay of conflicting forces within an individual.
2) Catharsis: the therapeutic release of pent-up emotional tension.
3) Psychoanalysis: Freud’s term for the clinical application of
psychodynamic theory.
4) Unconscious Mind: contains memories, emotions and thoughts,
some of which are illogical or socially unacceptable.
5) Preconscious Mind: thoughts and memories that are relatively easy
to access by focusing one’s attention on them.
6) Personality
a) Id: the part that is comprised of all of our biological drives that
demand immediate gratification.
b) Ego: the rational, negotiating, and decision-making component of
the personality.
c) Superego: the internalized values and rules we receive from our
parents and society.
7) Defense Mechanisms: function to send these unpleasant thoughts
and feelings to the unconscious mind and prevent them from rising to
the conscious mind.
a) Denial: refusal to acknowledge a problem or believe any
information that causes anxiety.
b) Repression: “motivated forgetting” of painful or unacceptable
thoughts, feelings or memories.
c) Regression: an apparent return to a more juvenile way of thinking
or acting.
d) Displacement: the diversion of an unacceptable thought or impulse
from its actual target to a less threatening object or person.
e) Reaction Formation: the presentation of one’s thoughts or feelings
as the extreme opposite of what they actually are.
f) Projection: attributing one’s own undesirable characteristics or
motives to other people.
g) Rationalization: people “make excuses” and reframe unpleasant
events as actually beneficial, or their actions as justifiable or rational
(when the actions are arguably not so).
h) Sublimation: the transformation of sexual or aggressive energies into
acceptable and pro-social behaviors.
8) Stages of Psychosexual Development
Libido: a psychosexual energy.
9) Erikson’s 8 Stages of Psychosocial Development
When the conflict is resolved in a positive and constructive manner,
the person moves into the next stage of development in a
psychologically healthy state. If the conflict is not resolved, the
negative effects will most likely carry over into future stages, and
have a detrimental effect on the challenges that are yet to be faced.
B. Humanistic Models
1) Humanistic Psychology: deals with values, beliefs, and
consciousness, including spirituality and guiding principles by which
people live their lives.
2) Self-Actualization: a state of achieving one’s full potential.
3) Self-Concept (Real Self): an image of the person that they really are.
4) Ideal Self: an image that represents the person they would like to be.
5) Unconditional Positive Regard: the acceptance of the person as he
or she is.
6) Conditional Positive Regard: the person is only held in esteem
when they fulfill certain requirements set for them by another person or
society.
C. Learning Models
1) Behaviorism: an approach to learning that describes observed
behavior as a predictable response to experience.
a) Classical Conditioning: learning based on association of a
stimulus that does not ordinarily elicit a particular response with
another stimulus that does elicit the response. Applies to involuntary
responses.
John Watson: Conditioning of Fear
Orphan boy ‘Little Albert’
– 1. Albert liked the furry rat
– 2. Rat presented with loud CRASH!
– 3. Albert cried because of noise
– 4. Eventually, site of rat made
Albert cry
b) Operant Conditioning: learning based on association of behavior
with its consequences. The individual learns from the consequences
of “operating” in the environment. Applies to voluntary responses.
Reinforcement increases the likelihood
of a behavior reoccurring
Positive: Giving a reward
Candy for finishing a task
Negative: Removing something aversive
No chores for getting an A+ on homework
Punishment decreases the likelihood
of a behavior reoccurring
Positive: Adding something aversive
Extra Chores
Negative: Removing something pleasant
Taking away car keys
2) Social Learning: we learn about many behaviors before we attempt
them for the first time by observing the behaviors of others and from
imagining the consequences of our own.
a) Bandura’s “bobo” doll research
D. Cognitive Models
1) The ABC Approach: the relationship among activating events (A),
beliefs (B), and consequences (C).
2) The Cognitive Distortion Approach: faulty processing of
information related to events that have transpired in one’s life.
a) Selective Abstraction
b) Overgeneralization
c) Magnification
d) Absolutist Thinking
II. The Sociocultural Perspective
A. Three areas of interest…
1) What behaviors are abnormal and are a sign of a psychological
disorder in almost any culture versus what behaviors have cultural
variability in terms of being considered abnormal and a sign of a
psychological disorder?
2) What causes variability among people from different cultural, ethnic,
etc. backgrounds in terms of the prevalence of an agreed upon existing
psychological disorder?
3) What are some culture specific psychological disorders and when are
they simply varied manifestations of a universal underlying psychological
problem?
III. The Biological Perspective
The Neuron and
Neuronal Communication
Key Neurotransmitters
A. Acetylcholine: is important for memory. A deterioration
of neurons that transmit this neurotransmitter may
contribute to Alzheimer's Disease.
B. GABA: too little of this neurotransmitter can raise levels
of anxiety.
C. Norepinephrine and Serotonin: a decrease in these
neurotransmitters is associated with depression.
D. Dopamine: a gradual decay of the neurons that release
this neurotransmitter is linked to Parkinson’s Disease.
Excess dopamine is commonly found in schizophrenics.
IV. The Biopsychosocial Perspective
A. Diathesis-Stress Model
B. Epigenetics: examines how various environmental
influences can affect genetic expression.
Methodology
I. Research Methods
A. Naturalistic Observation: a careful examination of what
happens under more or less natural conditions.
B. Laboratory Observation: behavior is observed and
recorded in controlled environment.
C. Correlational Studies
1) Correlation: a measure of the relationship between 2 variables.
2) Correlational Study: a procedure in which investigators measure the
correlation between 2 variables without controlling for either of them.
3) Correlation Coefficient: a mathematical estimate of the relationship
between 2 variables. The range is –1 to +1.
D. Experiment: a study in which the investigator manipulates
at least one variable while measuring at least one other
variable.
1) Independent Variable: the item that the experimenter manipulates to
get an effect.
a) Placebo: a pill with no pharmacological effects.
2) Dependent Variable: the item that the experimenter measures to see
if the independent variable had an effect.
3) Experimental Group: the group that receives a treatment that an
experiment is designed to test.
4) Control Group: the group that is treated just like the experimental
group, but does not receive the treatment.
5) Blind to Condition: the participants or the observers or both do not
know who received a treatment versus a placebo.
E. Cross-Sectional Study: a study designed to assess agerelated differences, in which people of different ages are
assessed on one occasion.
F. Longitudinal Study: a study designed to assess changes
in a group over time.
G. Epidemiological Study: a study that tracks the rate of
occurrence of a particular disorder among different population
groups.
H. Case Study: a carefully drawn biography based on clinical
interviews, observations, and psychological tests.
I. Sampling
1) Population: the entire group of people to be considered.
2) Sample: a small number of people taken from the population.
II. Ethical Concerns with Humans:
experimenters must be careful that the designs
of their studies do not harm participants
mentally, emotionally, or physically.
A. Informed Consent: a statement informing participants what
to expect in an experiment and that requires their acceptance
of the procedures.
B. Right to Privacy and Confidentiality: results and names
must be kept confidential.