Psychopathology 16 markers
✏️Definitions of abnormality (1)
One of the definitions of abnormality is statistical infrequency. One of the most obvious ways of
defining normal and abnormal is by how often it is seen. Any behaviour that is commonly seen can
be thought of as 'normal' whilst behaviours that are unusual or rare can be seen as 'abnormal', or a
statistical infrequency. An example is IQ and intellectual disability disorder. The average IQ is
between 85 and 115, and only 2% of people have an IQ of 70 or below. The people scoring below 70
are abnormal and are diagnosed with intellectual disability disorder.
Another way of defining abnormality is deviation from social norms. Abnormality is based on social
context, and so if a person behaves in a way that is different from how they are expected to behave,
then they might be classified as 'abnormal'. Societies make collective judgements about certain
behaviours and therefore choose what is 'normal' and what isn't. There aren't very many behaviours
that are considered universally abnormal, so definitions of abnormality are culturally bound. An
example is homosexuality, which is considered abnormal in some cultures, and in the past was also
considered abnormal. Antisocial personality disorder is the failure to conform to normal behaviours.
This means that a psychopath is abnormal because they deviate from the social norms, and lack
empathy.
A strength of statistical infrequency is that it has real-world applications. Statistical infrequency can
be used to diagnose illnesses such as intellectual disability disorder because this requires an IQ in the
bottom 2% of people. Statistical infrequency can also be helpful when assessing a range of
conditions, such as depression, and how to classify severe depression. This means that statistical
infrequency can be useful as a diagnostic tool for the assessment of illnesses.
A limitation of statistical infrequency is that some more unusual characteristics can also be positive.
If there are a very small amount of people who have a certain characteristic or behaviour, this means
it is statistically infrequent. However, this doesn’t mean that we would call them 'abnormal'. IQ
scores of about 130 are just as unusual as those below 70 but aren't regarded as a negative trait.
This means that statistical infrequency can be part of defining abnormality, but it shouldn’t be the
sole basis.
A strength of deviation from social norms is that it has real-world application. Deviation from social
norms can be useful when diagnosing anti-social personality disorder since it requires people to fail
to conform to standards. Deviation from social norms can also help to diagnose a schizotypal
personality disorder, which involves unusual behaviours. This means that deviation from social
norms is particularly useful in psychiatric diagnoses.
A limitation of deviation from social norms is that they are very dependent on situations and
cultures. One person might be labelled as abnormal, however, in a different place or culture, a
person might be labelled as normal. An example of this is hearing voices. In some cultures, this is
seen as socially acceptable, however, in the UK this is seen as abnormal. This means that it's hard to
judge what is abnormal from different social and cultural contexts.
✏️Definitions of abnormality (1)
One of the definitions of abnormality is statistical infrequency. One of the most obvious ways of
defining normal and abnormal is by how often it is seen. Any behaviour that is commonly seen can
be thought of as 'normal' whilst behaviours that are unusual or rare can be seen as 'abnormal', or a
statistical infrequency. An example is IQ and intellectual disability disorder. The average IQ is
between 85 and 115, and only 2% of people have an IQ of 70 or below. The people scoring below 70
are abnormal and are diagnosed with intellectual disability disorder.
Another way of defining abnormality is deviation from social norms. Abnormality is based on social
context, and so if a person behaves in a way that is different from how they are expected to behave,
then they might be classified as 'abnormal'. Societies make collective judgements about certain
behaviours and therefore choose what is 'normal' and what isn't. There aren't very many behaviours
that are considered universally abnormal, so definitions of abnormality are culturally bound. An
example is homosexuality, which is considered abnormal in some cultures, and in the past was also
considered abnormal. Antisocial personality disorder is the failure to conform to normal behaviours.
This means that a psychopath is abnormal because they deviate from the social norms, and lack
empathy.
A strength of statistical infrequency is that it has real-world applications. Statistical infrequency can
be used to diagnose illnesses such as intellectual disability disorder because this requires an IQ in the
bottom 2% of people. Statistical infrequency can also be helpful when assessing a range of
conditions, such as depression, and how to classify severe depression. This means that statistical
infrequency can be useful as a diagnostic tool for the assessment of illnesses.
A limitation of statistical infrequency is that some more unusual characteristics can also be positive.
If there are a very small amount of people who have a certain characteristic or behaviour, this means
it is statistically infrequent. However, this doesn’t mean that we would call them 'abnormal'. IQ
scores of about 130 are just as unusual as those below 70 but aren't regarded as a negative trait.
This means that statistical infrequency can be part of defining abnormality, but it shouldn’t be the
sole basis.
A strength of deviation from social norms is that it has real-world application. Deviation from social
norms can be useful when diagnosing anti-social personality disorder since it requires people to fail
to conform to standards. Deviation from social norms can also help to diagnose a schizotypal
personality disorder, which involves unusual behaviours. This means that deviation from social
norms is particularly useful in psychiatric diagnoses.
A limitation of deviation from social norms is that they are very dependent on situations and
cultures. One person might be labelled as abnormal, however, in a different place or culture, a
person might be labelled as normal. An example of this is hearing voices. In some cultures, this is
seen as socially acceptable, however, in the UK this is seen as abnormal. This means that it's hard to
judge what is abnormal from different social and cultural contexts.
