PSYC 100 Chapter Notes - Chapter 15.1, 15.3: Psychological Trauma, Personality Disorder, Dsm-5

• School: Queen's University
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSYC 100
• Professor: Jordan Poppenk

Document Summary

Apply the three-prong test to identify the presence of a mental disorder. Describe the ways genes and environment interact to produce mental disorders. Describe how the behaviour of people with psychological illness is maladaptive. To diagnose mental illness, a lot of information is required to rule out other explanations for unusual behaviour. Symptoms must be identified causing the individual distress or impair the ability to fulfill daily functions, those of which must be considered clinically significant. These symptoms include those which are sufficiently significant, marked, or substantial in intensity or duration that the patient would benefit from professional treatment. More information can help one view the whole picture. One must also consider both internal or external factors. Internal factors are from within that may take the form of compulsions to do something or feelings of hopelessness. External factors are tangible and come from others and may include orders given by a supervisor or rules in a competition.