Chapter 1: looking at abnormality (Abnormal Psychology)
● When people discuss certain types of mental illnesses, they forget that till this date there
are no biological tests that can show that certain mental illnesses are present
○ When someone has schizophrenia, this will not show up on a biological test
● Cultural relativism: this is the view that there are no universal standards or rules for
labeling a behavior as abnormal
○ Instead, behaviors can only be labeled as abnormal according to cultural norms
and as it says in the name cultural relativism looks at how we can compare the
values and norms of different cultures to each other
● The four D’s of abnormality:
○ Dysfunction (the person has some kind of dysfunctional behavior in daily life)
○ Distress (the individual is experiencing distress in their daily lives)
○ Deviance (the person is behaving differently from other individuals, for example
is someone is hearing voices or seeing things that are not there)
○ Dangerousness (the person might be a danger to themselves)
● Across history, 3 types of theories have been used to explain abnormal behavior:
○ 1. Biological theories: so mental illnesses are seen as a problem because
something in the body has broken down and therefore the person is now
experiencing problems
○ 2. Supernatural theories: as it says in the name believes that mental illnesses have
been caused by some kind of supernatural power that is causing the person to act
strangely. For example some kind of sins or demonic power
○ 3. Psychological theories: mental illness is a result of trauma that people have
experiences and that is why they are now experiencing all these problems
● In prehistoric times, people had supernatural theories of abnormal behavior
Chapter 1: Introduction (Disorders of Childhood: Development and Psychopathology)
● Common descriptions of normality and psychopathology often focus on:
● 1) Statistical deviance: the infrequency of certain emotions, cognitions and behaviors
● 2) Sociocultural norms: the beliefs and expectations of certain groups about what kind of
emotions and behaviors are desirable and acceptable to show in a society
○ Statistical deviance: as it says in the name, this approach is a statistical one in the
sense that you compare a child’s behavior to that of other children and in this way
you see whether the child is showing too much of something or too little
○ Socio-cultural norms: as it says in the name this is when children who fail to
conform to age-related or culture-relevant expectations might be viewed as
challenging, struggling or disorders
Mental health perspectives
● There is a distinction made between adequate adaptation and optimal adaptation
1
, ○ Adequate adaptation has to do with what is considered okay, acceptable or good
enough
○ Optimal adaptation has to do with what is excelled, superior or the best of what is
possible
■ So this also says it in the name: adequate is of course better than optimal
adaptation
○ So there are 3 types of adaptation: the poor adaptation, adequate adaptation and
optimal adaptation
The impact of values on definitions of disorder
● With statistical deviance it is easier to classify a child's behavior on a continuum because
we made a graph in which we said how much of a behavior is optimal and how much of
something is too much or too little
● With sociocultural definitions, value judgements are the very basis of definitions of
disorder. It all depends on someone’s values.
● Whether casual use of mind-altering substance is tolerated or condemned by a particular
socio-cultural group of people
○ For example the use of marijana is seen as something that is socially accepted in
Amsterdam but that does not mean this is the case in other countries as well
● Cultural norms influence developmental expectations
Definitions of psychopathology and developmental psychopathology
● Rates of disorders in infancy, childhood and adolescence
○ Prevalence refers to the proportion of a population with a disorder
○ Incidences refers to the rate at which new cases arise
■ So for example during Covid, the incidences of general anxiety may have
increased because many people were stuck at home and lack of social
support gave them increased anxiety
● Barriers to care are widespread and have been extensively summarized
○ So these are the literal barriers to care such as long waiting lists, not enough
psychologists or that the insurance companies do not cover something
○ Tolan and Dodge propose a 4-part model for a comprehensive system that
simultaneously promotes:
■ 1. Mental health within normal developmental settings
■ 2. Aid for emerging mental health issues for children
■ 3. Targets high risk youth with prevention
■ 4. Provides effective treatment for disorders
● These are the 4 parts of the 4-part model for a comprehensive system that was proposed
by Tolan and Dodge:
○ 1. Children and their families should be able to access appropriate mental health
2
, services when needed
○ 2. Child mental health should be a major component of healthy development
promotion
○ 3. Efforts should emphasize preventive care for high-risk children and families
○ 4. More attention must be paid to cultural context and cultural competence
The stigma of mental illness
● Mukolo, Heflingeer and Wallston identify several dimensions of stigma:
○ Negative stereotypes
○ Devaluation
○ Discrimination
● There are also 2 targets of stigma:
○ The individual
○ The family of the individual
● There are 2 contexts of stigma
○ The general public
○ The self/the individual
3
, Chapter 7: Autism Spectrum Disorder
● Both infantile autism and children with Asperger showed a profound lack of social
awareness
○ Children with Asperger however described better language skills and more social
interest (think of Greta Thunberg)
● A picture of autism emerged that highlighted 3 areas of deviance:
○ 1. Social isolation
○ 2. Impaired language and communication
○ 3. Stereotypical behaviors
● If someone had autism but they seemed to be doing well then this is referred to as the
so-called “high-functioning” autism
○ Clinicians believed that children with Asper will be better treated if there was an
actual separate diagnosis for them so now the DSM actually includes: Asperger
Syndrome
● Autism and Asperger’s syndrome are best understood on a continuum or on a spectrum
(not everyone has autism to the same extent)
○ Autism Spectrum Disorder
● The high rate of comorbidity between autism and intellectual disability is the focus of
ongoing research
Social Cognition
● Two of the most important features of social cognition are the distinctions between what
is more and less important and what is social and nonsocial
● Social learning tasks include both learning from others and learning about others
Theory of Mind
● Joint attention: there are many things we can do to have someone’s attention apart from
just talking to them, we can make eye contact, or use our hands or point at things and all
these aspects help us to smooth out the process of social interaction
○ Join attention is the capacity to coordinate one’s visual attention with the attention
of another person (nobody wants to be talking to someone and having the feeling
that the other person is looking elsewhere)
■ Literally joining each other’s attention together
● Theory of mind: an ability to attribute mental states to others and understanding that
others may not think the way that you do
Affective Social Competence
● Affective social competence: as it says it in the name it is about one’s social competence
(how competent are they in social interactions)
○ Specifically it refers to the coordinations of the capacities to experience emotion,
4
● When people discuss certain types of mental illnesses, they forget that till this date there
are no biological tests that can show that certain mental illnesses are present
○ When someone has schizophrenia, this will not show up on a biological test
● Cultural relativism: this is the view that there are no universal standards or rules for
labeling a behavior as abnormal
○ Instead, behaviors can only be labeled as abnormal according to cultural norms
and as it says in the name cultural relativism looks at how we can compare the
values and norms of different cultures to each other
● The four D’s of abnormality:
○ Dysfunction (the person has some kind of dysfunctional behavior in daily life)
○ Distress (the individual is experiencing distress in their daily lives)
○ Deviance (the person is behaving differently from other individuals, for example
is someone is hearing voices or seeing things that are not there)
○ Dangerousness (the person might be a danger to themselves)
● Across history, 3 types of theories have been used to explain abnormal behavior:
○ 1. Biological theories: so mental illnesses are seen as a problem because
something in the body has broken down and therefore the person is now
experiencing problems
○ 2. Supernatural theories: as it says in the name believes that mental illnesses have
been caused by some kind of supernatural power that is causing the person to act
strangely. For example some kind of sins or demonic power
○ 3. Psychological theories: mental illness is a result of trauma that people have
experiences and that is why they are now experiencing all these problems
● In prehistoric times, people had supernatural theories of abnormal behavior
Chapter 1: Introduction (Disorders of Childhood: Development and Psychopathology)
● Common descriptions of normality and psychopathology often focus on:
● 1) Statistical deviance: the infrequency of certain emotions, cognitions and behaviors
● 2) Sociocultural norms: the beliefs and expectations of certain groups about what kind of
emotions and behaviors are desirable and acceptable to show in a society
○ Statistical deviance: as it says in the name, this approach is a statistical one in the
sense that you compare a child’s behavior to that of other children and in this way
you see whether the child is showing too much of something or too little
○ Socio-cultural norms: as it says in the name this is when children who fail to
conform to age-related or culture-relevant expectations might be viewed as
challenging, struggling or disorders
Mental health perspectives
● There is a distinction made between adequate adaptation and optimal adaptation
1
, ○ Adequate adaptation has to do with what is considered okay, acceptable or good
enough
○ Optimal adaptation has to do with what is excelled, superior or the best of what is
possible
■ So this also says it in the name: adequate is of course better than optimal
adaptation
○ So there are 3 types of adaptation: the poor adaptation, adequate adaptation and
optimal adaptation
The impact of values on definitions of disorder
● With statistical deviance it is easier to classify a child's behavior on a continuum because
we made a graph in which we said how much of a behavior is optimal and how much of
something is too much or too little
● With sociocultural definitions, value judgements are the very basis of definitions of
disorder. It all depends on someone’s values.
● Whether casual use of mind-altering substance is tolerated or condemned by a particular
socio-cultural group of people
○ For example the use of marijana is seen as something that is socially accepted in
Amsterdam but that does not mean this is the case in other countries as well
● Cultural norms influence developmental expectations
Definitions of psychopathology and developmental psychopathology
● Rates of disorders in infancy, childhood and adolescence
○ Prevalence refers to the proportion of a population with a disorder
○ Incidences refers to the rate at which new cases arise
■ So for example during Covid, the incidences of general anxiety may have
increased because many people were stuck at home and lack of social
support gave them increased anxiety
● Barriers to care are widespread and have been extensively summarized
○ So these are the literal barriers to care such as long waiting lists, not enough
psychologists or that the insurance companies do not cover something
○ Tolan and Dodge propose a 4-part model for a comprehensive system that
simultaneously promotes:
■ 1. Mental health within normal developmental settings
■ 2. Aid for emerging mental health issues for children
■ 3. Targets high risk youth with prevention
■ 4. Provides effective treatment for disorders
● These are the 4 parts of the 4-part model for a comprehensive system that was proposed
by Tolan and Dodge:
○ 1. Children and their families should be able to access appropriate mental health
2
, services when needed
○ 2. Child mental health should be a major component of healthy development
promotion
○ 3. Efforts should emphasize preventive care for high-risk children and families
○ 4. More attention must be paid to cultural context and cultural competence
The stigma of mental illness
● Mukolo, Heflingeer and Wallston identify several dimensions of stigma:
○ Negative stereotypes
○ Devaluation
○ Discrimination
● There are also 2 targets of stigma:
○ The individual
○ The family of the individual
● There are 2 contexts of stigma
○ The general public
○ The self/the individual
3
, Chapter 7: Autism Spectrum Disorder
● Both infantile autism and children with Asperger showed a profound lack of social
awareness
○ Children with Asperger however described better language skills and more social
interest (think of Greta Thunberg)
● A picture of autism emerged that highlighted 3 areas of deviance:
○ 1. Social isolation
○ 2. Impaired language and communication
○ 3. Stereotypical behaviors
● If someone had autism but they seemed to be doing well then this is referred to as the
so-called “high-functioning” autism
○ Clinicians believed that children with Asper will be better treated if there was an
actual separate diagnosis for them so now the DSM actually includes: Asperger
Syndrome
● Autism and Asperger’s syndrome are best understood on a continuum or on a spectrum
(not everyone has autism to the same extent)
○ Autism Spectrum Disorder
● The high rate of comorbidity between autism and intellectual disability is the focus of
ongoing research
Social Cognition
● Two of the most important features of social cognition are the distinctions between what
is more and less important and what is social and nonsocial
● Social learning tasks include both learning from others and learning about others
Theory of Mind
● Joint attention: there are many things we can do to have someone’s attention apart from
just talking to them, we can make eye contact, or use our hands or point at things and all
these aspects help us to smooth out the process of social interaction
○ Join attention is the capacity to coordinate one’s visual attention with the attention
of another person (nobody wants to be talking to someone and having the feeling
that the other person is looking elsewhere)
■ Literally joining each other’s attention together
● Theory of mind: an ability to attribute mental states to others and understanding that
others may not think the way that you do
Affective Social Competence
● Affective social competence: as it says it in the name it is about one’s social competence
(how competent are they in social interactions)
○ Specifically it refers to the coordinations of the capacities to experience emotion,
4
