Chapter 12 Psychological Disorders Slides prepared by: Melissa S. Terlecki, Cabrini College PSYCHOLOGY Schacter Gilbert Wegner

PSYCHOLOGY Schacter Gilbert Wegner 12.1 Identifying Psychological Disorders: What Is Abnormal?

Psychological Disorders Psychological disorders: disorders reflecting abnormalities of the mind. Medical model: the conceptualization of psychological abnormalities as diseases that, like biological diseases, have symptoms, causes, and possible cures. diagnosis, symptoms, syndrome.

Interior of a Madhouse (p. 365)

Questions What’s the first step in helping someone with a psychological disorder?

Classification of Psychological Disorders DSM-IV-TR: a classification system that describes the features used to diagnose each recognized mental disorder and indicates how the disorder can be distinguished from other, similar problems. disturbances in behavior, thoughts, or emotions. significant personal distress or impairment. internal dysfunction. global assessment of functioning (GAF score). Comorbidity: the co-occurrence of two or more disorders in a single individual.

Table 12.1: Main DSM-IV-TR Categories of Mental Disorders (p. 336)

Figure 12.1: Comorbidity of Depression and Anxiety Disorders (p. 368)

Questions Why is mental disease more than simply a departure from the norm? Why is it difficult to make reliable diagnoses?

Causation of Psychological Disorders Diathesis-stress model: a model suggesting that a person may be predisposed for a mental disorder that remains unexpressed until triggered by stress. The intervention-causation fallacy involves the assumption that if a treatment is effective, it must address the cause of the problem.

Questions Why does assessment require looking at a number of factors? What are the limitations of using brain scans for diagnosing?

Culture and Community: Can People Have…Different Mental Disorders? Some psychological problems appear in some cultures and not others. DMS-IV-TR identifies “culture-bound syndromes”. examples include: ataque de nervious, ghost sickness, koro, and mal de ojo.

Consequences of Labeling Psychiatric labeling can have negative consequences. Educating people about mental disorders does not dispel the stigma. Labeling may affect self-concept.

Questions Why might someone avoid seeking help?

PSYCHOLOGY Schacter Gilbert Wegner 12.2 Anxiety Disorders: When Fears Take Over

Anxiety Disorders Anxiety disorder: the class of psychological disorder in which anxiety is the predominant feature. generalized anxiety disorder, phobic disorders, panic disorder, and obsessive- compulsive disorder.

Questions When is anxiety harmful, and when is it helpful?

Generalized Anxiety Disorder Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD): a disorder characterized by chronic excessive worry accompanied by three or more of the following symptoms: restlessness, fatigue, concentration problems, irritability, muscle tension, and sleep disturbance.

Generalized Anxiety Disorder in Impoverished Women (p. 372)

Questions What factors contribute to GAD?

Phobic Disorders Phobic disorders: disorders characterized by marked, persistent, and excessive fear and avoidance of specific objects, activities, or situations. Specific phobia: irrational fear of a particular object or situation that markedly interferes with an individual’s ability to function. Social phobia: irrational fear of being publicly humiliated or embarrassed. Preparedness theory: the idea that people are instinctively predisposed toward certain fears.

No Fear of Heights (p. 373)

Questions Why might we be predisposed to certain phobias?

Panic Disorder Panic disorder: a disorder characterized by the sudden occurrence of multiple psychological and physiological symptoms that contribute to a feeling of stark terror. Agoraphobia: a specific phobia involving a fear of venturing into public places.

Agoraphobia (p. 374)

Questions What is it about public places that many agoraphobics fear?

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD): a disorder in which repetitive, intrusive thoughts (obsessions) and ritualistic behaviors (compulsions) designed to fend off those thoughts interfere significantly with an individual’s functioning.

Hand Washing in OCD (p. 375)

Questions How effective is willful effort at curing OCD?

PSYCHOLOGY Schacter Gilbert Wegner 12.3 Dissociative Disorders: Going To Pieces

Dissociative Disorders Dissociative disorder: a condition in which normal cognitive processes are severely disjointed and fragmented, creating significant disruptions in memory, awareness, or personality that can vary in length from a matter of minutes to many years. dissociative identity disorder, dissociative fugue, and dissociative amnesia.

Dissociative Identity Disorder Dissociative identity disorder (DID): the presence within an individual of two or more distinct identities that at different times take control of the individual’s behavior.

Dissociative Disorder (p. 377)

Questions What accounts for the increase in DID diagnoses?

Dissociative Fugue and Dissociative Amnesia Dissociative fugue: the sudden loss of memory for one’s personal history, accompanied by an abrupt departure from home and the assumption of a new identity. Dissociative amnesia: the sudden loss of memory for significant personal information.

“Al” and Dissociative Fugue (p. 378)

Questions How do dissociative fugue and dissociative amnesia differ from other kinds of memory impairments?

PSYCHOLOGY Schacter Gilbert Wegner 12.4 Mood Disorders: At The Mercy Of Emotions

Mood Disorders Mood Disorder: mental disorder that has mood disturbances as their predominant feature. depressive disorders and bipolar disorder.

Depressive Disorders Major depression: a severely depressed mood that lasts 2 or more weeks and is accompanied by feelings of worthlessness and lack of pleasure, lethargy, and sleep and appetite disturbances. double depression: periodic major depression and dysthymia. some women experience postpartum depression following giving birth. Dysthymia: the same cognitive and bodily problems as in depression are present, but they are less severe and last longer – persisting for at least 2 years. Seasonal affective disorder (SAD): recurrent depressive episodes in a seasonal pattern. Helplessness theory: individuals who are prone to depression automatically attribute negative experiences to causes that are internal, stable, and global.

Figure 12.2: Brain and Depression (p. 380)

Questions What is the difference between depression and sadness? What are some reasons more women than men experience depression? What is helplessness theory?

Bipolar Disorder Bipolar disorder: an unstable emotional condition characterized by cycles of abnormal, persistent high mood (mania), and low mood (depression). rapid cycling bipolar disorder is characterized by at least 4 mood episodes.

Winston Churchill and His “Black Dog” (p. 381)

Questions How does stress relate to manic depressive episodes?

The Real World: Suicide Risk and Prevention Suicide is the 11 th leading cause of death in the U.S. There exist a variety of motives for suicide. risks include: talking about suicide, mood swings, failed love interest, family history, reckless or risky behavior, decline in performance, withdrawal, trapped feelings, giving away possessions, and/or increased substance abuse.

PSYCHOLOGY Schacter Gilbert Wegner 12.5 Schizophrenia: Losing the Grasp on Reality

Schizophrenia Schizophrenia: a disorder characterized by the profound disruption of basic psychological processes; a distorted perception of reality; altered or blunted emotion; and disturbances in thought, motivation, and behavior. delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech, grossly disorganized behavior, and negative symptoms. paranoid, catatonic, disorganized, undifferentiated, and residual.

Table 12.2: Types of Schizophrenia (p. 386)

Questions What is schizophrenia? What are the characteristics of schizophrenia?

Biological and Psychological Factors Associated with Schizophrenia Dopamine hypothesis: the idea that schizophrenia involves an excess of dopamine activity. Adolescents with schizophrenia may show progressive tissue loss. Disturbed environment may play a role (diathesis-stress model).

Table 12.3: Average Risk of Developing Schizophrenia (p. 387)

Figure 12.4: Brain Tissue Loss in Adolescent Schizophrenia (p. 388)

Questions What are the roles of genetics and environment in schizophrenia?

PSYCHOLOGY Schacter Gilbert Wegner 12.6 Personality Disorders: Going To Extremes

Personality Disorders Personality disorder: disorder characterized by deeply ingrained, inflexible patterns of thinking, feeling, or relating to others or controlling impulses that cause distress or impaired functioning. odd/eccentric cluster: schizotypal, paranoid, schizoid. dramatic/erratic cluster: antisocial, borderline, histrionic, narcissistic. anxious/inhibited cluster: avoidant, dependent, obsessive-compulsive. Diagnoses rely on self-reports and peer nominations.

Serial Murder and Antisocial Personality Disorder (p. 389)

Questions Why is self-reporting a problem in diagnosing personality disorders?

Antisocial Personality Disorder Antisocial personality disorder (APD): a pervasive pattern of disregard for and violation of the rights of others that begins in childhood or early adolescence and continues into adulthood. often a history of conduct disorder. 3 or more symptoms: illegal behavior, deception, impulsivity, physical aggression, recklessness, irresponsibility, lack of remorse for wrongdoing.

Questions What are some of the factors that contribute to APD?

Hot Science: Positive Psychology Positive psychology is a movement that seeks to understand what makes our lives pleasant, good, and meaningful. Seligman began this movement. Classification system known as the Character Strengths and Virtues (CSV) is used. What makes people happy?

Where Do You Stand? Normal or Abnormal? Some of the symptoms of the major disorders are moderately common. hallucinatory experiences (mostly auditory) and delusional thinking are somewhat normal.