AQA A Level Psychology Paper 1
4.1 Introductory topics in Psychology
Topic: Psychopathology
All 16 marker topic essays
1) Outline and evaluate two or more definitions of abnormality (DFSN
& FFA) (16)
One definition of abnormality is known as deviation from social norms (DFSN).
A social norm is an unwritten rule about what is acceptable within a particular
society. So, according to this definition, a person is seen as abnormal if their
thinking or behaviour violates these social norms of what is acceptable. Norms
are specific to the culture we live in, they may be different for each generation
and different in every culture. So, there are relatively few behaviours that
would be considered universally abnormal. An example of behaviour that
deviates from social norms is antisocial personality disorder, which is
characterised by impulsive, aggressive and irresponsible behaviour. An
important symptom of this disorder is the failing to conform to lawful and
culturally normative ethical behaviour, suggesting that those with this disorder
deviate from social norms.
One limitation of DFSN as a definition of abnormality is that social norms
change over time, an issue referred to as hindsight bias. For example,
homosexuality was regarded as a mental illness in the UK until 1973, often
resulting in institutionalisation, but is now simply considered a variation of
normal behaviour. This suggests that, historically, a reliance upon deviation
from social norms as a definition of abnormality may have resulted in
violations of human rights where people, by today’s standards, were deemed
‘abnormal’’. Furthermore, it could be argued that diagnoses upon these
grounds may have been used as a form of social control over minority groups
as a means to exclude those who do not conform.
Another limitation is the cultural and situational relativism of DFSN, due to the
variability between social norms in different cultures and even different
situations. For example, a person from one cultural group may label someone
from another group as abnormal using their standards rather than the person’s
standards. For instance, the experience of hearing voices is the norm in some
4.1 Introductory topics in Psychology
Topic: Psychopathology
All 16 marker topic essays
1) Outline and evaluate two or more definitions of abnormality (DFSN
& FFA) (16)
One definition of abnormality is known as deviation from social norms (DFSN).
A social norm is an unwritten rule about what is acceptable within a particular
society. So, according to this definition, a person is seen as abnormal if their
thinking or behaviour violates these social norms of what is acceptable. Norms
are specific to the culture we live in, they may be different for each generation
and different in every culture. So, there are relatively few behaviours that
would be considered universally abnormal. An example of behaviour that
deviates from social norms is antisocial personality disorder, which is
characterised by impulsive, aggressive and irresponsible behaviour. An
important symptom of this disorder is the failing to conform to lawful and
culturally normative ethical behaviour, suggesting that those with this disorder
deviate from social norms.
One limitation of DFSN as a definition of abnormality is that social norms
change over time, an issue referred to as hindsight bias. For example,
homosexuality was regarded as a mental illness in the UK until 1973, often
resulting in institutionalisation, but is now simply considered a variation of
normal behaviour. This suggests that, historically, a reliance upon deviation
from social norms as a definition of abnormality may have resulted in
violations of human rights where people, by today’s standards, were deemed
‘abnormal’’. Furthermore, it could be argued that diagnoses upon these
grounds may have been used as a form of social control over minority groups
as a means to exclude those who do not conform.
Another limitation is the cultural and situational relativism of DFSN, due to the
variability between social norms in different cultures and even different
situations. For example, a person from one cultural group may label someone
from another group as abnormal using their standards rather than the person’s
standards. For instance, the experience of hearing voices is the norm in some
