1. Explaining Mental Disorder

2. The study of mental disorder involves:
Definition: What do we mean by mental disorder?
Classification: How do we distinguish between different mental disorders?
Explanation: How do we understand mental disorder?
Treatment: How do we treat mental disorder?

3. Different Approaches to Explaining Mental Disorder
No completely dominant approach.

4. Different Approaches to Explaining Mental Disorder
All of the approaches we will explore assume that the proximal cause of behaviour and experience is biological.
The approaches emphasize different distal causes.

5. Different Approaches to Explaining Mental Disorder
Most psychologists today do not propose linear, one dimensional causal explanations

6. Approaches to Explaining Mental Disorder
Biological / Neuroscience Perspective
Psychodynamic Perspective
Cognitive Perspective
Behavioural Perspective
Sociocultural Perspective
Humanistic / Existential Perspective
Interpersonal Perspective

7. Biological / Neuroscience Perspective
the functioning of the brain and other biological systems

8. Behaviour Genetics
Behaviour Genetics studies the extent to which mental disorder is caused by genetics.
The “nature-nurture” debate explores the role of genes vs. the environment.

9. Behaviour Genetics Three different methods are used: family studies
twin studies
adoption studies

10. Family Studies
Examine family members of an individual with a mental disorder to see what percentage of relatives also have the disorder.

11. Twin Studies Monozygotic twins (MZ) share exactly the same genotype.
Dizygotic twins (DZ), have 50% of their genes in common.

12. Adoption Studies
Attempt to remove environmental influence that DZ and MZ twins share by studying twins that have been separated at birth.

13. Adoption Studies
Adoptions studies still do not control for all environmental factors because:
People with the same genes seek out and elicit the same kinds of environments.
Outgoing vs. Shy
Energetic vs. Passive

14. Genes and Behaviour Summary
It is most helpful to think of how genes and environment interact to produce disorders.

15. Interactions, or “that depends”
What is the influence of X?
that depends on Y.

16. The Diathesis-Stress Model
Individuals inherit tendencies to express certain traits or behaviours, which are then expressed or activated under conditions of stress.

17. The reciprocal Gene-Environment Model
Genes may actually increase the probability that an individual will experience a stressful event.

18. Evaluating the Biological Approach
Effective treatment does not mean we understand causation
Side effects of biological treatments
Correlation does not mean causation
the disorder could cause the biological correlate
a third factor might cause both the disorder and the biological correlate

19. The Psychodynamic Explanation of mental disorder
Psychodynamic Model
mental mechanisms
emphasis on childhood experiences
emphasis on unconscious motives

20. Freud and the “Classical” Psychodynamic model
Unconscious:
most mental activity takes place outside of awareness
the unconscious contains passively and actively forgotten information

21. The Structure of the Mind according to FreudId
basic primitive biological drives or instincts
Ego
develops to help the Id find adaptive ways to fulfill it’s desires and cope with reality

22. Superego internalized moral standards of parents
does not consider what is realistic only what is abstractly ideal

23. Super Ego Reality Ego Id Mediator
Competing / Conflicting Demands on the Ego
Conscience
Reality
Ego
Mediator
Logical / Rational Id
Illogical / Emotional

24. The Ego’s Defense Mechanisms
Ego defense mechanisms involve distorting or denying internal and external reality.

25. Repression Repression is the basis of all defense mechanisms.
Impulses that are unacceptable to the ego are pushed into the unconscious

26. Sublimation Sublimation is the most adaptive defense mechanism
Sublimation is the transformation of Id impulses into more socially acceptable forms.

27. Anxiety
Anxiety is a signal that the ego’s controls are at risk of being overcome by the id or the superego.

28. The Psychodynamic Explanation of mental disorder
Disorder occurs when the ego is not able to adequately balance the Id, Superego and reality.

29. The Psychodynamic Explanation of mental disorder
Poor ego defense leads to anxiety
Rigid ego defense leads to constricted behaviour and impoverished relationships.
Ego collapse leads to a flooding of id impulses.

30. Evaluating the Psychodynamic Approach
First well developed approach to mental disorders that did not consider mental disorder as a biological or a moral, religious problem.
Difficult to subject many of the ideas to empirical testing.
Gender and cultural bias in original Freudian ideas

31. The Cognitive Explanation of mental disorder
“Men are disturbed not by things but by the views they take of them” Epictetus

32. Cognitive Appraisal Stimulus--->Appraisal---> Response
evaluation of stimulus based on memories, beliefs, and expectations

33. Cognitive Appraisal Appraisals are determined by:
Competencies (acquired skills)
Perception/Understanding
Expectancies
Values
Plans and Goals

34. Cognitive Appraisal Attribution is an example of an appraisal
belief about the cause of an event
global/specific
stable/unstable
internal/external

35. Information Processing
Selective Attention
what information we take in from the environment (Schizophrenia, depression, anxiety)
Schema
how we organize and understand the information we take in (self schemas)

36. Evaluating the Cognitive Approach
Does it explain causes or describe symptoms? (Why do people have maladaptive beliefs?)
If an individual could change their thoughts then they would not have a problem.
Changing beliefs or views about the world may not be the best solution in some situations.

37. Behavioural Approach
mental disorder is the result of “learning” or environmental experience

38. The Background of Behaviourism
Learning
the process whereby behaviour changes in response to the environment
Pavlov
The conditioned Reflex
Watson
study only what can be observed
“Little Albert”

39. The Background of Behaviourism
Thorndike
The Law of Effect
Skinner
Radical Behaviorism
predict and influence behaviour by focusing on environmental contingencies

40. Respondent (Classical) Conditioning
UCS -----> UCR
the unconditioned or unlearned stimulus causes an unconditioned or unlearned response
CS -----> CR
after conditioning the conditioned stimulus causes a conditioned response

41. Operant Conditioning
The organism does something or “operates” on the environment.
The likelihood of a response is altered by its consequences.

42. Punishment and Reinforcement
any consequence of a behaviour that increases the probability of the behaviour occurring again
Punishment
any consequence of a behaviour that decreases the probability of the behaviour occurring again

43. Learning Mechanisms
Extinction
Generalization
Discrimination
Shaping

44. Behavioural Explanation of Mental Disorder
Abnormal behaviour, or mental disorders are the result of various environmental experiences (learning or conditioning)
eg Dog Phobia
respondent conditioning
negative reinforcement
eg Depression
extinction

45. Behavioural Explanation of Mental Disorder
Less inclined to use Diagnostic Labels
symptoms have different functional roles in different people
Less focused on the past, more focused on present environmental factors

46. Sociocultural Approach
mental disorder is the result of social and political factors

47. Sociocultural Approaches
Mental disorder is a social label or a social construction.

48. Social Construction Social Concept
the boundary between what is and is not a mental disorder is not “natural” but “cultural” (think back to mental disorder defined as a norm violation)

49. Social Construction Social Role
the “cause” of a mental disorder is the fact that an individual is fulfilling or carrying out a social role
this role has a function for the individual, and/or society as a whole

50. Three umpires are sitting around over a beer, and one says, “There’s balls and there’s strikes, and I call ‘em the way they are.” Another says, “There’s balls and there’s strikes, and I call ‘em the way I see ‘em.” The third says, “There’s balls and there’s strikes, and they ain’t nothin’ until I call ‘em.”
Anderson, 1990 p. 75

51. Humanistic / Existential Approach
Natural vs. Human Science
Importance of ‘Understanding’ and entering into subjective world of client
Emphasis on uniqueness of each person rather than general patterns
Agency
Contrast with determinism
Authenticity, Freedom, and Responsibility

52. Humanistic Approach ‘Acorn’ Theory Potential and Uniqueness
Fulfill possibilities
Self actualization