PSYC1011 Lecture Notes - Lecture 26: Dissociative Identity Disorder, Obsessive–Compulsive Disorder, Abnormal Psychology
Abnormal psychology
Defining abnormality
• Statistically infrequent
• Violate social norms
• Cause distress
o Abnormal thoughts/behaviour cause distress to the individual
o Limitations
▪ Distress is normal in some situations (trauma)
▪ Some (widely accepted) psychopathologies are not associated with distress
• Psychopathy, mania
• Cause impairment
o Impairment in the individual's ability to function
▪ Socially, occupationally, personally
o Limitations
▪ Some people are highly functional
• Asperger's disorder (now classified on the Autism Spectrum)
Defining abnormality
• No universally accepted definition
• Four characteristics gets close to the concept of 'abnormal psychology'
o Is a loose definition
Concept of a mental disorder
• Abnormal thoughts and behaviours tend not to occur in isolation
• Tends to occur in distinctive clusters
o Hallucinations and delusions
▪ Schizophrenia
o Obsessions and compulsions
▪ Obsession - belief
▪ Compulsion - behaviours
o Negative mood and flat affect and loss of energy and sleep difficulties
▪ Depression
• A mental disorder
o Is a distinct and recognizable cluster of abnormal thoughts and behaviours
Emile Kraepelin (1856-1926)
• Classify types of mental disorders based on systematic empirical observations
• 'madness' vs each individual symptom as a separate disorder
• Offered diagnostic categories defined by common patterns of symptoms
• Bipolar
• Substance abuse disorder
• Phobia of clowns
• Depression
• Obsessive compulsive disorder
• Schizophrenia
Diagnostic systems
• Kraepelin's system - most current diagnostic systems
o Imply that mental disorders are separate entities
• That is… you either have it or you don’t
• Many mental disorders reflect extreme versions of normal behaviour
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Document Summary
Statistically infrequent: violate social norms, cause distress, abnormal thoughts/behaviour cause distress to the individual, limitations, distress is normal in some situations (trauma) Some (widely accepted) psychopathologies are not associated with distress: cause impairment, psychopathy, mania. Some people are highly functional: asperger"s disorder (now classified on the autism spectrum) Four characteristics gets close to the concept of "abnormal psychology" Concept of a mental disorder: abnormal thoughts and behaviours tend not to occur in isolation, tends to occur in distinctive clusters, hallucinations and delusions. Schizophrenia: obsessions and compulsions, obsession - belief, compulsion - behaviours, negative mood and flat affect and loss of energy and sleep difficulties, depression, a mental disorder. Is a distinct and recognizable cluster of abnormal thoughts and behaviours. Emile kraepelin (1856-1926: classify types of mental disorders based on systematic empirical observations, offered diagnostic categories defined by common patterns of symptoms. "madness" vs each individual symptom as a separate disorder.
