A2 Psychology: Abnormalities
Impulse Control Disorders &
non-substance addictive disorder- Characteristics (Pt 1)
Defining ICD & Addiction
(Griffiths, 2005)
• Addiction- Involves difficulties in self-regulation (control) of our thoughts and behaviour
o Can’t resist inappropriate impulses or when to stop a particularly pleasurable activity
Griffiths: Proposed a Component Description
definition for An activity becomes the most important activity in a
1. Salience person’s life (overtaking thoughts)
addictive behaviours
that highlighted 6 2. Mood A euphoria or “buzz” after performing the activity
components: Modification (Emotions- Can’t be gotten from anywhere else)
An increasing amount is needed to achieve the same
o Components can 3. Tolerance effect
be applied to
both alcohol & Unpleasant feelings & physical effects when the
4. Withdrawal activity is discontinued
drug abuse AND
any other -Interpersonal- Disregarding consequences of
activities relationships, work, education, society due to
involving prioritizing their addiction
addiction 5. Conflict -Intrapersonal- Conflict within themselves, feeling
guilt/helplessness, want to get better but not being
able to do so
*But not everyone feels guilt
High chance that the individual would fall back into
6. Relapse the habit even after a long time
Impulse Control Disorder (ICD)
• ICD- Disorders where impulses cannot be resisted
o For it to be an addiction, conditions must have a significant impact on life of the sufferer
o Associated with psychological addiction (not physiological)
• Impulsivity has 5 distinct stages of behaviour:
o Impulse
o Growing Tension
o Pleasure- when impulse is satisfied
o Relief from satisfaction
o Guilt (not for some)
• After every cycle, the person would build an intolerance- the next cycle comes back stronger
1
Notes compiled by: Chew Wen Min
, Types of ICD
1. Kleptomania- The recurrent inability to resist urges to steal items that they generally do
not need and that usually have little value
DSM-V Symptoms: Statistics:
• Recurrent failure to resist impulses to steal things • Women > Men diagnosed
that are not needed for personal use or for their o But could be due to underreporting
monetary value (women might be more open to
• Tension/ arousal immediately before committing seeking treatment- pride issues)
the theft • 0.3- 0.6% of the population (3-6 in 1000)
• Pleasure/gratification/relief at the time of
committing the theft
• The stealing is not committed due to anger or
vengeance, and is not due to delusions/ - Usually has some other disorders at the
hallucinations (own conscious intentions) same time- Like anxiety/ substance
• Not considered a kleptomaniac if: misuse
o The stealing is attributed to these disorders - Inability to control the behaviour can
o Ex: Conduct Disorder (misbehaving), Manic lead to arrest, prosecution,
episode (high energy), Antisocial Personality embarrassment or loss of job
Disorder (not caring about rules)
cd
Measuring Kleptomania
-Kleptomania Symptoms Assessment Scale (K-SAS)
• 11 items
• Self-rated scale
• Measures: Impulses, thoughts, feelings, and behaviours related to stealing
• Asked to consider statements related to the past 7 days
• Rated on a scale of 0-4 or 1-5 (5-point scale)
o Higher score= more severe
Strengths: Weaknesses:
1. Good test-retest reliability 1. Self-report
2. Has concurrent validity • Low validity- Response bias
• *Concurrent Validity- whether (Social desirability, underreport
scales measure the same thing because embarrassed)
• Compared with Global Assessment
of Functioning Scale
3. Quantitative Data
• Severity of disorder quantified for
easy comparison
2.
2
Notes compiled by: Chew Wen Min
Impulse Control Disorders &
non-substance addictive disorder- Characteristics (Pt 1)
Defining ICD & Addiction
(Griffiths, 2005)
• Addiction- Involves difficulties in self-regulation (control) of our thoughts and behaviour
o Can’t resist inappropriate impulses or when to stop a particularly pleasurable activity
Griffiths: Proposed a Component Description
definition for An activity becomes the most important activity in a
1. Salience person’s life (overtaking thoughts)
addictive behaviours
that highlighted 6 2. Mood A euphoria or “buzz” after performing the activity
components: Modification (Emotions- Can’t be gotten from anywhere else)
An increasing amount is needed to achieve the same
o Components can 3. Tolerance effect
be applied to
both alcohol & Unpleasant feelings & physical effects when the
4. Withdrawal activity is discontinued
drug abuse AND
any other -Interpersonal- Disregarding consequences of
activities relationships, work, education, society due to
involving prioritizing their addiction
addiction 5. Conflict -Intrapersonal- Conflict within themselves, feeling
guilt/helplessness, want to get better but not being
able to do so
*But not everyone feels guilt
High chance that the individual would fall back into
6. Relapse the habit even after a long time
Impulse Control Disorder (ICD)
• ICD- Disorders where impulses cannot be resisted
o For it to be an addiction, conditions must have a significant impact on life of the sufferer
o Associated with psychological addiction (not physiological)
• Impulsivity has 5 distinct stages of behaviour:
o Impulse
o Growing Tension
o Pleasure- when impulse is satisfied
o Relief from satisfaction
o Guilt (not for some)
• After every cycle, the person would build an intolerance- the next cycle comes back stronger
1
Notes compiled by: Chew Wen Min
, Types of ICD
1. Kleptomania- The recurrent inability to resist urges to steal items that they generally do
not need and that usually have little value
DSM-V Symptoms: Statistics:
• Recurrent failure to resist impulses to steal things • Women > Men diagnosed
that are not needed for personal use or for their o But could be due to underreporting
monetary value (women might be more open to
• Tension/ arousal immediately before committing seeking treatment- pride issues)
the theft • 0.3- 0.6% of the population (3-6 in 1000)
• Pleasure/gratification/relief at the time of
committing the theft
• The stealing is not committed due to anger or
vengeance, and is not due to delusions/ - Usually has some other disorders at the
hallucinations (own conscious intentions) same time- Like anxiety/ substance
• Not considered a kleptomaniac if: misuse
o The stealing is attributed to these disorders - Inability to control the behaviour can
o Ex: Conduct Disorder (misbehaving), Manic lead to arrest, prosecution,
episode (high energy), Antisocial Personality embarrassment or loss of job
Disorder (not caring about rules)
cd
Measuring Kleptomania
-Kleptomania Symptoms Assessment Scale (K-SAS)
• 11 items
• Self-rated scale
• Measures: Impulses, thoughts, feelings, and behaviours related to stealing
• Asked to consider statements related to the past 7 days
• Rated on a scale of 0-4 or 1-5 (5-point scale)
o Higher score= more severe
Strengths: Weaknesses:
1. Good test-retest reliability 1. Self-report
2. Has concurrent validity • Low validity- Response bias
• *Concurrent Validity- whether (Social desirability, underreport
scales measure the same thing because embarrassed)
• Compared with Global Assessment
of Functioning Scale
3. Quantitative Data
• Severity of disorder quantified for
easy comparison
2.
2
Notes compiled by: Chew Wen Min
