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Dysfunctional Behavior
Anita Sood
Defining Behavior
 Normal: behavior that is aligned with what society says is appropriate. Abnormal:
behavior that is not socially acceptable and is personally distressful. Both of these definitions
are accurate, due to the fact that society defines what the norm is and those who do not
follow it are considered abnormal.

DSM-IV: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourth edition; the APA’s
(American Psychiatric Association) major classification of psychological disorders. Multiaxial
system: classifies individuals into 5 dimensions. Axis I: all diagnostic categories except
personality disorders and mental retardation. Axis II: personality disorders and mental
retardation. Axis III: general medical conditions. Axis IV: psychosocial and environmental
probs. Axis V: current level of functioning. Most controversial aspect of DSM-IV is that it still
classifies individuals based on their symptoms and uses medical terminology in the
psychiatric tradition of thinking about mental disorders in terms of illness and disease. This
strategy implies an internal cause that is more or less independent of external or
environmental factors. DSM-IV is also controversial b/c it labels as psych disorders what are
often thought of as everyday probs. Another criticism is that the system focuses strictly on
pathology and probs, w/a bias toward finding smtg wrong w/anyone who becomes an
object of diagnostic study.
Non Psychotic Disorders
 Anxiety disorder: psychological disorders that include motor tension, hyperactivity, and
apprehensive expectations. Causes: early trauma, genetic factors, distress. Treatments:
drug therapy, psych therapy, facing fears and overcoming them.

Panic Disorder: an anxiety disorder marked by the recurrent, sudden onset of intense
apprehension or terror. Panic attacks often strike w/o warnings and produce severe
palpitations, shortness of breath, chest pains, trembling, dizziness, and feelings of
helplessness. Causes: biological factors, early trauma. Treatments: relaxant drugs, therapy,
facing fears.

Phobic disorder: commonly called phobia, an anxiety disorder in which the individual has
an irrational, overwhelming, persistent fear of a particular object or situation. Social
phobia: an intense fear of being humiliated or embarrassed in social situations. Individuals
w/this phobia are afraid they will say or do the wrong thing. Agoraphobia: a cluster of
fears centered around public places and being unable to escape or to find help, should one
become incapacitated. Causes: genetic or biological factors, environmental factors, early
trauma, lack of confidence. Treatments: therapy, support group, medication.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD): anxiety disorder; the individual has anxietyprovoking thoughts that will not go away (obsession) and/or urges to perform repetitive,
ritualistic behaviors to prevent or produce some future situation (compulsion). Causes:
genetic components, depletion of neurotransmitter serotonin, occurs during a period of
stress. Treatments: ignoring/dismissing negative obsessive thoughts, practicing to break the
habits.

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): anxiety disorder that develops through
exposure to a traumatic event, severely oppressive situations, severe abuse, and natural
and unnatural disasters. Symptoms: flashbacks, constricted ability to feel emotions,
excessive arousal, difficulties w/memory and concentration, feelings of apprehension,
impulsive outbursts of behavior. Treatments: therapy, support groups.

Dissociative disorders: psychological disorders that involve a sudden loss of memory or
change in identity. Psychogenic amnesia: Dissociative disorder involving extreme
memory loss caused by extensive psychological stress. Fugue (means “flight”):
Dissociative disorder in which the individual not only develops amnesia but also
unexpectedly travels away from home and establishes a new identity. Dissociative
identity disorder (DID): formerly called multiple personality disorder, this is the most
dramatic but least common dissociative disorder; individuals suffering from this disorder
have two or more distinct personalities. Causes: extreme stress, early trauma, biological or
genetic factors. Treatments: psychological therapy, drug therapy.

Non-psychotic depression: this form of depression is not as severe as psychotic
depression, but involves similar symptoms to major depression. The causes are similar as
well: early trauma, environmental factors, abuse, and other physical contributions.
Treatments involve different types of therapies, support groups, and other ways of finding
the root cause and solving it.
Psychotic Disorders
 Major affective disorders (mood disorders): psychological disorders in which there is a
primary disturbance in mood (prolonged emotion that colors the individuals entire emotional
state). Major depressive disorder (MDD): indicated by a major depressive episode and
depressed characteristics, such as lethargy and hopelessness, lasting at least 2 weeks.
Bipolar disorder: a mood disorder characterized by extreme mood swings that include one
or more episodes of mania. Dysthymic disorder: a depressive disorder that is generally
more chronic and has fewer symptoms than major depressive disorder.

Biological causes: heredity, neurophysiological abnormalities (altered brain wave activity
during sleep), neurotransmitter deregulation (norepinephrine, serotonin, and dopamine),
and hormonal factors (chronic hyperactivity in neuroendocrine glandular system).
Psychological causes: psychodynamic explanations (depression stems from childhood
experiences, preventing development of strong sense of self). Behavioral explanations (life’s
stresses can lead to depression by reducing positive reinforcers)- learned helplessness.
Cognitive explanations (depressed individuals rarely think positive thoughts). Sociocultural
causes: interpersonal relationships (probs that develop in relationships with other people,
both recent and earlier). Socioeconomic and ethnic factors (individuals w/low SES are more
likely to develop depression). Cultural variations (society’s emphasis on self, independence,
and individualism, religion are reasons we are prone to depression). Gender (women more
likely to develop bipolar disorder).

Schizophrenia: a severe psychological disorder that is characterized by highly disordered
thought processes. Symptoms include odd communication, inappropriate emotion, abnormal
motor behavior, and social withdrawal.

Disorganized schizophrenia: type of schizophrenia where individual has delusions and
hallucinations that have little or no recognizable meaning. Catatonic schizophrenia: type
of schizophrenia that is characterized by bizarre motor behavior, which sometimes takes the
form of a completely immobile stupor. Paranoid schizophrenia: type of schizophrenia
that is characterized by delusions of reference, grandeur, and persecution. Undifferentiated
schizophrenia: type of schizophrenia that is characterized by disorganized behavior,
hallucinations, delusions, and incoherence.

Biological explanations: heredity/genetic predisposition- as genetic similarity increases,
so does a person’s risk of becoming schizophrenic. Structural brain abnormalities (imaging
techniques, such as PET scan, clearly show enlarged ventricles in brain). Neurotransmitter
deregulation (produce higher levels of dopamine). Psychological factors: diathesis-stress
model (a model of schizophrenia that proposes a combination of biogenetic disposition and
stress as the cause of the disorder). Sociocultural factors: disorders of thought and
emotion are common and vary from culture to culture.
Personality Disorder
 Personality disorders: chronic, maladaptive cognitive-behavioral patterns that are
thoroughly integrated into the individual’s personality. Odd/Eccentric cluster: paranoid
(lack of trust, suspicious). Schizoid (do not form adequate social relationships). Schizotypal
(odd thinking patterns that reflect eccentric beliefs). Dramatic/emotionally problematic
cluster: histrionic (seek a lot of attention, overreact). Narcissistic (unrealistic sense of selfimportance). Borderline (emotionally unstable, impulsive, unpredictable, irritable, and
anxious). Antisocial (guiltless, law-breaking, exploitive, irresponsible). Chronicfearfulness/avoidant cluster: avoidant (shy and inhibited, yet desire interpersonal
relationships). Dependent (lack self-confidence and don’t express own personalities).
Passive-aggressive (pout and procrastinate). Obsessive-compulsive (obsessed w/rules,
emotionally insensitive, oriented toward lifestyle of productivity and efficiency).

Causes of antisocial personality disorder: people w/this disorder used to be called
psychopaths. They regularly violate other people’s rights. It begins before the age of 15 and
continues into adulthood. More common in males than females. Very difficult to treat.
Explanations for causes include biological (genetic predisposition), psychological (impulsive
and aggressive behavior suggests they have not adequately learned how to delay
gratification), and Sociocultural factors (inadequate socialization).