Psychological Disorders
Basic Concepts of Psychological Disorders
● Psychological Disorders
○ Syndrome marked by a clinically significant disturbance in an individual’s
cognition, emotion regulation, or behavior
○ Dysfunctional or maladaptive
○ Often accompanied by distress
Understanding psychological disorders
● Medical model
○ Hospitals replaced by asylums
○ Mental illness are diagnosed on the basis of symptoms, treated through therapy,
and cured
○ Genetically influenced brain structure and biochemical abnormalities contribute to
mental illness
Biopsychosocial approach
- Psychology studies how biological, psychological, and social-cultural factors
interact to produce specific psychological disorders
- Vulnerability-stress model
Classifying disorders and labeling people
● Classification aims to predict a disorder’s future course, suggest appropriate treatment,
and prompt research
● American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental
Disorders
● World Health Organization’s International Classification of Diseases
DSM-5 changes
● Autism and Asperger’s syndrome = autism spectrum disorder
● Mental retardation = intellectual disability
● Hoarding disorder and binge-eating disorder added
DSM-5 criticisms
● Wider net pathologized everyday life; too broad
● Subjective diagnostic labels
● Biasing power of labels
Basic Concepts of Psychological Disorders
● Understanding suicide
○ Suicide risk increases increases with anxiety and depression
● Group differences in suicide rates
, ○ National differences
○ Racial differences
○ Gender differences
○ Trait differences
○ Age differences and trends
○ Other group differences
○ Day-of-the-week & seasonal differences
○ Gun ownership vs. no gun ownership
Helping someone who is talking about suicide
● Listen and empathize
● Connect the person with resources
● Protect someone at immediate risk by seeking help
Nonsuicidal self-injury
● More common in adolescence and among females
● May cut or burn the skin, hit oneself, insert objects under the nails or skin, or administer
self-tattoos
● Tend to experience bullying, harassment, and/or a range of other problems
Why do people hurt themselves?
● Find relief from intense negative thoughts through pain distraction
● Attract attention and possibly get help
● Relieve guilt by punishing themselves
● Get others to change their negative behavior (bullying, criticism)
● Fit in with a peer group
Reported rates of psychological disorders: WHO study
- Lowest rate = Nigeria
- Highest rate = U.S.
- Immigrant paradox
*1 in 5 adults has an emotional/psychiatric disorder
What increases vulnerability to mental disorders?
- Predictors of mental health cross ethnic and gender lines
- First symptoms are experienced by age 24 for majority of those studied
Anxiety Disorders, OCD, and PTSD
● Anxiety disorders
○ Generalized anxiety disorder
■ Person is continually tense, apprehensive, and in a state of autonomic
nervous system arousal
● Panic disorder
Basic Concepts of Psychological Disorders
● Psychological Disorders
○ Syndrome marked by a clinically significant disturbance in an individual’s
cognition, emotion regulation, or behavior
○ Dysfunctional or maladaptive
○ Often accompanied by distress
Understanding psychological disorders
● Medical model
○ Hospitals replaced by asylums
○ Mental illness are diagnosed on the basis of symptoms, treated through therapy,
and cured
○ Genetically influenced brain structure and biochemical abnormalities contribute to
mental illness
Biopsychosocial approach
- Psychology studies how biological, psychological, and social-cultural factors
interact to produce specific psychological disorders
- Vulnerability-stress model
Classifying disorders and labeling people
● Classification aims to predict a disorder’s future course, suggest appropriate treatment,
and prompt research
● American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental
Disorders
● World Health Organization’s International Classification of Diseases
DSM-5 changes
● Autism and Asperger’s syndrome = autism spectrum disorder
● Mental retardation = intellectual disability
● Hoarding disorder and binge-eating disorder added
DSM-5 criticisms
● Wider net pathologized everyday life; too broad
● Subjective diagnostic labels
● Biasing power of labels
Basic Concepts of Psychological Disorders
● Understanding suicide
○ Suicide risk increases increases with anxiety and depression
● Group differences in suicide rates
, ○ National differences
○ Racial differences
○ Gender differences
○ Trait differences
○ Age differences and trends
○ Other group differences
○ Day-of-the-week & seasonal differences
○ Gun ownership vs. no gun ownership
Helping someone who is talking about suicide
● Listen and empathize
● Connect the person with resources
● Protect someone at immediate risk by seeking help
Nonsuicidal self-injury
● More common in adolescence and among females
● May cut or burn the skin, hit oneself, insert objects under the nails or skin, or administer
self-tattoos
● Tend to experience bullying, harassment, and/or a range of other problems
Why do people hurt themselves?
● Find relief from intense negative thoughts through pain distraction
● Attract attention and possibly get help
● Relieve guilt by punishing themselves
● Get others to change their negative behavior (bullying, criticism)
● Fit in with a peer group
Reported rates of psychological disorders: WHO study
- Lowest rate = Nigeria
- Highest rate = U.S.
- Immigrant paradox
*1 in 5 adults has an emotional/psychiatric disorder
What increases vulnerability to mental disorders?
- Predictors of mental health cross ethnic and gender lines
- First symptoms are experienced by age 24 for majority of those studied
Anxiety Disorders, OCD, and PTSD
● Anxiety disorders
○ Generalized anxiety disorder
■ Person is continually tense, apprehensive, and in a state of autonomic
nervous system arousal
● Panic disorder
