abnormal psychology

abnormal psychology

psychopathology -

✅study of nature, symptomatology, development, and treatment of psychological disorders



challenges to the study of psychopathology -

✅Maintain objectivity

Avoid preconceived notions

Reduce stigma



key characteristics in the DSM definition of mental disorder -

✅personal distress

disability

violation of social norms

dysfunction



psychological dysfunction -

✅breakdown in cognitive, emotional, or behavioral functioning



psychological dysfunction -

✅considered to be on a continuum or a dimension rather than to be categories that are either
present or absent



personal distress -

✅a person's behavior may be classified as disordered if it causes him or her great distress



disability -

✅impairment in some important area of life (e.g. work or personal relationships) - can also
characterize mental disorder



disability -

1|Page

, ✅impairment is set in the context of a person's background



violation of social norms -

✅Reaction is outside cultural norms



violation of social norms -

✅something is considered abnormal because it occurs infrequently



violation of social norms -

✅it deviates from the average



diagnostic and statistical manual (dsm) -

✅widely accepted system

used to classify psychological problems and disorders



DSM contains diagnostic criteria for behaviors that -

✅fit a pattern, cause dysfunction or subjective distress, are present for a specific duration, and
for behaviors that are not otherwise explainable



abnormality -

✅accdg to dsm-iv tr (& drafts of dsm-v): describes behavioral, psychological, or biological
dysfunctionss that are unexpected in their cultural context and associated with present distress and
impairment in functioning, or increase risk of suffering, death, pain, or impairment



abnormality -

✅labels and terminology: psychological disorder or psychological abnormality

mental illness is a less preferred term



presents -

✅what is the presenting problem?



prevalence -


2|Page

, ✅how many people in the population as a whole have the disorder?



incidence -

✅how many new cases occur during a given period, such as year?



onset -

✅how's the beginning of the disorder



course -

✅disorders follow a somewhat individual pattern



etiology -

✅what contributes to the development of psychopathology?



treatment development -

✅How can we help alleviate psychological suffering?

Includes pharmacological, psychosocial, and/or combined treatments



prognosis -

✅anticipated course of a disorder (e.g. good or guarded)



treatment outcome research -

✅How do we know that we have helped?

Limited in specifying actual causes of disorders



demonology -

✅the doctrine that an evil being or spirit can dwell within a person and control his or her mind
and body thereby can be treated by exorcism



exorcism -

✅the ritualistic casting out of evil spirits


3|Page