6/4/25, 9:40 AM
PSYCHOPATHOLOGY ESSAY PLAN ACTUAL EXAM
2025-2026 \LATEST UPDATE WITH COMPLETE
QUESTIONS AND ACCURATE DETAILED ANSWERS
\ACTUAL EXAM WITH VERIFIED ANSWERS \GRADED
A+
Behavioural approach to • behavioural approach has helped us treat phobias
explaining phobias AO3 - - doesn't mean they were necessarily learnt but
treatment suggests that learning is a crucial part of
phobias
• Seeks to re-learn behaviours by creating new
association and reinforcing more positive
behaviours
Systematic desensitisation :
• taught relaxation techniques, hierarchy of fears, work
through bottom to top in vivo or in vitro while practicing
Behavioural approach to relaxation techniques - next time anxiety won't go as
treating phobias AO1 high
• gradually desensitised to stimulus
• In vivo and
in vitro
Flooding :
• Intense quick exposure to phobia
Rapid exposure -> high release of adrenaline which gradually
decreases
- immediate full exposure
- prevention of avoidance
- until they are calm and fear is extinguished
/ 1/16
,6/4/25, 2:52 PM Psychopathology essay plans
SD :
- research success
- relatively
Behavioural approach to easy F :
- quick
treating phobias AO3
- uneth
ical
Both :
- symptoms or cause
• Research supports success for a range of phobias - McGrath et
al reported that
about 75% of patients with phobias respond to SD - the
Behavioural approach to key to success appears to lie with actual contact with
treating phobias AO3 - the feared stimulus, so in vivo techniques are more
research support successful than in vitro techniques - often a number of
different exposure techniques are involved - in vivo, in
vitro, and modelling (watching someone cope well
with
stimulus) - demonstrates effectiveness of SD and the
value of using a range of different exposure
techniques - research has application
• relatively easy - more likely to do it with effort -
Behavioural approach to
doesn't require in-depth therapy + doesn't require
treating phobias AO3 -
insight or memory of cause - just deals with current
relatively easy
behaviour - more simply and useful to more people
Behavioural approach to • quick - only one exposure is required, people more
treating phobias AO3 - likely to do it or useful when need to get over phobia
quick quickly (e.g. when severely impacts their life)
• unethical - can be highly traumatic process -> could
make phobia worse (intense fear reinforces phobia,
new negative experience to associate) - patients are
Behavioural approach to
made aware of this before hand but may still quit
treating phobias AO3 -
during treatment - reduced ultimate effectiveness of
unethical
therapy for some people - individual differences in
response limit effectiveness - could also reinforce
phobia if not resolved - counter productive Kids
cant consent as may not understand what is actually
going to happen and the fear they will face
2/1
6
, 6/4/25, 2:52 PM Psychopathology essay plans
treating symptoms or cause - phobia could be sign of
anxiety disorder which will just come back as something
Behavioural approach to else (symptom substitution) - psychodynamic approach
treating phobias AO3 - explains that phobias are developed due to
symptoms or cause projection - Frued recorded a case study of little
hans, where his phobia of horses was actually the result
of an intense envy of his father that was projected onto
the horse - not treating root of problem -
psychotherapy
Ellis's ABC model :
• ACTIVATING event (getting fired) -> BELIEF (irrational/ rational)
(company was
overstuffed/they always hated me) -> CONSEQUENCE
(healthy emotions/unhealthy emotions)
(acceptance/depression)
• Musturbatory thinking - thinking certain ideas or
assumptions must be true in order for an individual to
be happy (-> irrational beliefs) - these lead to
disappointment
Cognitive approach to
and potentially depression (irrational beliefs about
explaining depression AO1
failure cause someone to become depressed when
they fail
Beck's negative triad :
• Depressed individuals feel as they do because their
thinking is biased towards negative interpretations
of the world and they lack a perceived sense of
control
• Negative schema - depressed people have acquired a
negative schema about the world during childhood
(e.g. from peer rejection) - this is activated in
situations
resembling the primal conditions where the schema was
learnt - negative schemas lead to systematic biases in
thinking (overgeneralisation drawing a sweeping
conclusion from a small thing (e.g. someone being busy)
• Negative triad - a pessimistic and irrational view of the
self, the world and the future (i bore everyone, i can
3/1
6
PSYCHOPATHOLOGY ESSAY PLAN ACTUAL EXAM
2025-2026 \LATEST UPDATE WITH COMPLETE
QUESTIONS AND ACCURATE DETAILED ANSWERS
\ACTUAL EXAM WITH VERIFIED ANSWERS \GRADED
A+
Behavioural approach to • behavioural approach has helped us treat phobias
explaining phobias AO3 - - doesn't mean they were necessarily learnt but
treatment suggests that learning is a crucial part of
phobias
• Seeks to re-learn behaviours by creating new
association and reinforcing more positive
behaviours
Systematic desensitisation :
• taught relaxation techniques, hierarchy of fears, work
through bottom to top in vivo or in vitro while practicing
Behavioural approach to relaxation techniques - next time anxiety won't go as
treating phobias AO1 high
• gradually desensitised to stimulus
• In vivo and
in vitro
Flooding :
• Intense quick exposure to phobia
Rapid exposure -> high release of adrenaline which gradually
decreases
- immediate full exposure
- prevention of avoidance
- until they are calm and fear is extinguished
/ 1/16
,6/4/25, 2:52 PM Psychopathology essay plans
SD :
- research success
- relatively
Behavioural approach to easy F :
- quick
treating phobias AO3
- uneth
ical
Both :
- symptoms or cause
• Research supports success for a range of phobias - McGrath et
al reported that
about 75% of patients with phobias respond to SD - the
Behavioural approach to key to success appears to lie with actual contact with
treating phobias AO3 - the feared stimulus, so in vivo techniques are more
research support successful than in vitro techniques - often a number of
different exposure techniques are involved - in vivo, in
vitro, and modelling (watching someone cope well
with
stimulus) - demonstrates effectiveness of SD and the
value of using a range of different exposure
techniques - research has application
• relatively easy - more likely to do it with effort -
Behavioural approach to
doesn't require in-depth therapy + doesn't require
treating phobias AO3 -
insight or memory of cause - just deals with current
relatively easy
behaviour - more simply and useful to more people
Behavioural approach to • quick - only one exposure is required, people more
treating phobias AO3 - likely to do it or useful when need to get over phobia
quick quickly (e.g. when severely impacts their life)
• unethical - can be highly traumatic process -> could
make phobia worse (intense fear reinforces phobia,
new negative experience to associate) - patients are
Behavioural approach to
made aware of this before hand but may still quit
treating phobias AO3 -
during treatment - reduced ultimate effectiveness of
unethical
therapy for some people - individual differences in
response limit effectiveness - could also reinforce
phobia if not resolved - counter productive Kids
cant consent as may not understand what is actually
going to happen and the fear they will face
2/1
6
, 6/4/25, 2:52 PM Psychopathology essay plans
treating symptoms or cause - phobia could be sign of
anxiety disorder which will just come back as something
Behavioural approach to else (symptom substitution) - psychodynamic approach
treating phobias AO3 - explains that phobias are developed due to
symptoms or cause projection - Frued recorded a case study of little
hans, where his phobia of horses was actually the result
of an intense envy of his father that was projected onto
the horse - not treating root of problem -
psychotherapy
Ellis's ABC model :
• ACTIVATING event (getting fired) -> BELIEF (irrational/ rational)
(company was
overstuffed/they always hated me) -> CONSEQUENCE
(healthy emotions/unhealthy emotions)
(acceptance/depression)
• Musturbatory thinking - thinking certain ideas or
assumptions must be true in order for an individual to
be happy (-> irrational beliefs) - these lead to
disappointment
Cognitive approach to
and potentially depression (irrational beliefs about
explaining depression AO1
failure cause someone to become depressed when
they fail
Beck's negative triad :
• Depressed individuals feel as they do because their
thinking is biased towards negative interpretations
of the world and they lack a perceived sense of
control
• Negative schema - depressed people have acquired a
negative schema about the world during childhood
(e.g. from peer rejection) - this is activated in
situations
resembling the primal conditions where the schema was
learnt - negative schemas lead to systematic biases in
thinking (overgeneralisation drawing a sweeping
conclusion from a small thing (e.g. someone being busy)
• Negative triad - a pessimistic and irrational view of the
self, the world and the future (i bore everyone, i can
3/1
6
