PSYC 435 Abnormal Psychology
Overview and Research Approach
Part 1 Notes Athabasca University.
, PSYC 435 Notes Part 1
Chapter 1: Abnormal Psychology – Overview and Research Approaches
Discuss common topics and Abnormal Psychology: concerned with understanding the nature, causes,
issues relevant to Abnormal and treatment of mental disorders
Psychology.
Explain why we need to - We need ways to understand what is normal versus abnormal
classify mental disorders. behaviour in society, as well as ways to classify/group these
behaviours and disorders so we can better diagnose, treat, and
prevent them.
- There is no universal definition of abnormal or abnormality.
- We can classify behaviour or experiences as abnormal when:
o It causes subjective distress
o It is maladaptive
o It is statistically deviant
o It violates the standards of society (depending on the
magnitude of the violation)
o It creates social discomfort in ourselves or others
o It is irrational or unpredictable
o It is dangerous
Explain the DSM definition - DSM-V was published in 2013.
of mental disorders. - DSM definition: a mental disorder is defined as a syndrome that
is present in an individual and that involves clinically
significant disturbance in behavior, emotion regulation, or
cognitive functioning.
o Framed this way to reflect dysfunction in biological,
psychological, or developmental processes.
o Also includes significant distress or disability in key
areas of functioning such as social, occupational, or
other activities (disruption of normal function or ability)
- Problems with DSM and labelling: can be lots of stigma,
shorthand terms means that nuances and specifics can get lost
between clinicians and public.
o diagnostic classification systems do not classify people -
they classify the disorders that people have
Identify how culture can - Decisions about abnormal behavior always involve social
influence the definition of judgments and are based on the values and expectations of
Abnormal Psychology. society. Culture plays a role in deciding what is normal/expected
and abnormal/deviant.
- Cultural definitions of abnormality – variations in the ways that
cultures define/describe psychological distress. Culture can
shape clinical presentation of disorder as well.
Identify the professionals • Family physicians
responsible for working on • Mental health specialists
the mental health “team.” o Psychologists – individual therapy
o Psychiatrists – prescribe medication
o Clinical social worker – resolve family problems, access
community resources
, o Psychiatric nurse – daily check in
o Addictions counsellor
Explain the difference • Prevalence refers to the number of active cases in a population
between the prevalence and during any given period. Expressed as a percentage
the incidence of mental o Point prevalence refers to the estimated proportion of
disorders. actual, active cases of a disorder in a population at a
given point in time (a 1-year prevalence would include
everyone who experienced X during a year’s time)
o Lifetime prevalence: estimate of the number of people
who have had a particular disorder at any time in their
lives (even if they recovered).
• Incidence is the number of new cases that occur over a given
period.
o Incidence figures tend to be lower than prevalence
figures because they exclude pre-existing cases.
• Disorders can be acute (short in duration) or chronic (long in
duration)
Discuss the prevalent rates Epidemiology is the study of the distribution of diseases, disorders, or
of mental disorders. health-related behaviors in a given population.
• lifetime prevalence of having any DSM-IV disorder is 46.4
percent.
• Most common individual disorders are major depressive
disorder, alcohol abuse, and specific phobias, incl. social
phobias.
• While prevalence can be quite high, duration can be short – not
all disorders will last an entire lifetime, or be severe.
• Rates of illness are higher in some demographic groups than
others (FNMI, for example).
Explain inpatient and • inpatient care means hospitalization, typically for people who
outpatient treatment. need more intensive treatment.
• outpatient care requires a patient visit a mental health facility
practitioner, but the patient does not have to be admitted to the
hospital or stay there overnight.
Describe and explain the - Etiology: causes of disorders
benefits and dimensions of - Case Study: detailed accounts of patients who present with
the various research particular disorders. One observer (clinician) and one subject
approaches. (patient)
o BUT information presented in them is subject to bias –
writer decides what information to include and omit.
o Conclusions of a case study have low generalizability
- Self-Report Data: research participants complete questionnaires
or interviews.
o BUT people can be sucky self-reporters or self-
analyzers.
Describe the process of • Follow scientific method
doing research. • Lots of methods in abnormal psychology: case studies, self-
reports, and observational approaches
• Use control groups to compare differences between normal and
atypical to determine/identify variables.
• Experimental research involves manipulating one variable (the
Overview and Research Approach
Part 1 Notes Athabasca University.
, PSYC 435 Notes Part 1
Chapter 1: Abnormal Psychology – Overview and Research Approaches
Discuss common topics and Abnormal Psychology: concerned with understanding the nature, causes,
issues relevant to Abnormal and treatment of mental disorders
Psychology.
Explain why we need to - We need ways to understand what is normal versus abnormal
classify mental disorders. behaviour in society, as well as ways to classify/group these
behaviours and disorders so we can better diagnose, treat, and
prevent them.
- There is no universal definition of abnormal or abnormality.
- We can classify behaviour or experiences as abnormal when:
o It causes subjective distress
o It is maladaptive
o It is statistically deviant
o It violates the standards of society (depending on the
magnitude of the violation)
o It creates social discomfort in ourselves or others
o It is irrational or unpredictable
o It is dangerous
Explain the DSM definition - DSM-V was published in 2013.
of mental disorders. - DSM definition: a mental disorder is defined as a syndrome that
is present in an individual and that involves clinically
significant disturbance in behavior, emotion regulation, or
cognitive functioning.
o Framed this way to reflect dysfunction in biological,
psychological, or developmental processes.
o Also includes significant distress or disability in key
areas of functioning such as social, occupational, or
other activities (disruption of normal function or ability)
- Problems with DSM and labelling: can be lots of stigma,
shorthand terms means that nuances and specifics can get lost
between clinicians and public.
o diagnostic classification systems do not classify people -
they classify the disorders that people have
Identify how culture can - Decisions about abnormal behavior always involve social
influence the definition of judgments and are based on the values and expectations of
Abnormal Psychology. society. Culture plays a role in deciding what is normal/expected
and abnormal/deviant.
- Cultural definitions of abnormality – variations in the ways that
cultures define/describe psychological distress. Culture can
shape clinical presentation of disorder as well.
Identify the professionals • Family physicians
responsible for working on • Mental health specialists
the mental health “team.” o Psychologists – individual therapy
o Psychiatrists – prescribe medication
o Clinical social worker – resolve family problems, access
community resources
, o Psychiatric nurse – daily check in
o Addictions counsellor
Explain the difference • Prevalence refers to the number of active cases in a population
between the prevalence and during any given period. Expressed as a percentage
the incidence of mental o Point prevalence refers to the estimated proportion of
disorders. actual, active cases of a disorder in a population at a
given point in time (a 1-year prevalence would include
everyone who experienced X during a year’s time)
o Lifetime prevalence: estimate of the number of people
who have had a particular disorder at any time in their
lives (even if they recovered).
• Incidence is the number of new cases that occur over a given
period.
o Incidence figures tend to be lower than prevalence
figures because they exclude pre-existing cases.
• Disorders can be acute (short in duration) or chronic (long in
duration)
Discuss the prevalent rates Epidemiology is the study of the distribution of diseases, disorders, or
of mental disorders. health-related behaviors in a given population.
• lifetime prevalence of having any DSM-IV disorder is 46.4
percent.
• Most common individual disorders are major depressive
disorder, alcohol abuse, and specific phobias, incl. social
phobias.
• While prevalence can be quite high, duration can be short – not
all disorders will last an entire lifetime, or be severe.
• Rates of illness are higher in some demographic groups than
others (FNMI, for example).
Explain inpatient and • inpatient care means hospitalization, typically for people who
outpatient treatment. need more intensive treatment.
• outpatient care requires a patient visit a mental health facility
practitioner, but the patient does not have to be admitted to the
hospital or stay there overnight.
Describe and explain the - Etiology: causes of disorders
benefits and dimensions of - Case Study: detailed accounts of patients who present with
the various research particular disorders. One observer (clinician) and one subject
approaches. (patient)
o BUT information presented in them is subject to bias –
writer decides what information to include and omit.
o Conclusions of a case study have low generalizability
- Self-Report Data: research participants complete questionnaires
or interviews.
o BUT people can be sucky self-reporters or self-
analyzers.
Describe the process of • Follow scientific method
doing research. • Lots of methods in abnormal psychology: case studies, self-
reports, and observational approaches
• Use control groups to compare differences between normal and
atypical to determine/identify variables.
• Experimental research involves manipulating one variable (the
