PSYC 1F90 Chapter 14: Ch. 14 Psychological Disorders
16 Mar 2012
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Document Summary
Psychopathology: scientific study of mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders; also abnormal or maladaptive behavior. Characterized by subjective discomfort (personal feelings of pain, unhappiness, emotional distress) Statistical abnormality: abnormality defined on the basis of an extreme score on some dimension, ex. Statistical boundary lines tend to be somewhat arbitrary. Social nonconformity: disobeying public standards for acceptable conduct. Extreme nonconformity can lead to destructive or self-destructive behavior. Before anything can be defined as abnormal must consider the situational context (social situation, behavior setting, circumstances) Maladaptive: difficult to adapt to the environment and meet the demands of day-to-day life. Lose the ability to control thoughts, behaviors, feelings adequately. Deciding that a person needs help usually occurs when person does something that annoys or gains the attention of someone in a position of power in the persons life. Insanity: legal term that refers to a mental inability to manages one"s affairs or to be aware of the consequences of one"s actions.
