Abnormal PsychologyAbnormal Psychology - We need to find a way to define what this is. Is it abnormal to stay in bed all day, losing pleasure in things that give you pleasure. Before we diagnose, is this normal? What if before we say is it normal to do these things if your mother dies. Whether we see it as normal or abnormal depends on the context, so you cannot just look at a behavior and say it is not normal. Somewhere about 7% of the population worldwide is suffering from an abnormal psychological disorder. It is not a cultural issue, but some are more plagued than others. We see higher rates in more developed countries in the world, partially due to the ease and availability of doctors. There are disorders that are diagnosed in America that are not very present in places like Britain.Psychological Disorder - Clinically significant syndrome marked by a disturbance in ones cognition, emotion, regulation or behavior. Something that changes their ability to think, emote, regulate, or to behave. We are looking for three things, something that is deviant (abnormal), distressing and dysfunctional. Dysfunctional is something that impairs our ability to function, not getting out of our beds for a week at a time makes us dysfunctional. When looking at deviance, the time and place matters because it is what it normal in that period of time. Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder - A psychological disorder marked before the age of 7 bymore than one of the following symptoms, being inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity. It is not a disorder, it is somewhat just a normal part of being human. Since every young boy is like this, it is not deviant or abnormal. Scientific evidence does point that there are levels to our inattentiveness and impulsivity, so it is a real thing. However, you need to display the same behaviors in multiple different scenarios. Studies show that watching a lot of TV increases the chance of diagnosis. After about 3 years their stimulants lose effects.Medical Model - Before medicine, people would believe that this as the work of the devil. They may inflict pain on them to purge the spirits, perform an exorcism. We have changed both our treatment and diagnosis processes. We have adopted the medical model, the concept that diseases, including psychological diseases can be diagnosed, treated, and in most cases cured through the use of hospitalized medicine. There must be symptoms we can look for, so we put all of that information into one place. We can see that our behavior is a combination of both nature and nurture, and the causes of illness can also be identified. Eating disorders are far more prominent in the west because of their environment. People can be genetically predisposed to different disorders, or culturally predisposed.Biopsychosocial Approach - The mind and the body are inseparable. Biology mixes with genetics which mixes with the environment to make us more or less susceptible to abnormal disorders.Diathesis-Stress Model - One of the factors that goes into determining whether or not people develop an abnormal disorder. People who have low genetic and environmental stress are less susceptible to an abnormal psychological disorder. Takes into account two areas of stress,genetic and environmental stress. Only people with high levels of both are the ones likely to acquire an abnormal disorder. Two factors go into our susceptibility to getting a abnormal disorder, genetic stress and environmental stress.DSM-5 - Diagnostic and Statistical Manual 5. In it is every disorder that the APA recognizes, a list of their symptoms, and everything about it. It is designed to promote common diagnoses, there is a common standpoint, so a second diagnosis will be the same. It doesn’t define causes,but describes it, to make reliable and consistent diagnoses. Hoarding disorder is a new one in the DSM-5, binge eating disorder.Labeling Disorders - The number of disorders have increased dramatically since the DSM 1. In the past, autism and aspergers were considered different disorders, now they are the same disorder on the same spectrum. 26% of Americans will meet the diagnostic criteria every year for some disorder. Almost half, 46% of all people in their lives meet the criteria. Most of these disorders do not manifest before teenage years. If I knew someone had antisocial personality disorder, it would change my opinion on them and how I view them. Being labeled can be a good thing. You can find out why you are the way you are, and get support from other people. You can also for example get extra time on tests for your IEP, without that IEP good luck. Often times, being labeled come with a bunch of other problems.Anxiety DisordersAnxiety Disorders - Anxiety disorders are not part of everyday life. They are psychological disorder that are characterized by distressing or persistent anxiety, or dysfunctional anxiety reducing behaviors.Generalized Anxiety Disorder - A disorder where people a continually tense, apprehensive, always in the fight or flight arousal, and we don’t know what is causing you to be in that state. People find that concentration is difficult to contain, their worries shift, their anxiety also tends to show on their faces. We cannot identify the specific cause of their worries. Can cause depression, high blood pressure, and multiple people who have this were mistreated as kids. Aswe age, the symptoms tend to lessen, and oftentimes the people become sleep deprived, agitated, and 75% of all the people who suffer from this are women.Panic Disorder - Marked by unpredictable, minute long episodes of intense dread where the person experiences terror, feelings of choking, etc. This is how a panic attack manifests itself, one moment you are fine, and the next moment your heart is racing and you can’t breathe. Theiranxiety turns into a panic attack where you feel death is around the corner. Smokers have double the risk of panic attacks because their are constantly on a stimulant.Phobias - Irrational fear or avoidance of specific objects, activities, or specific situations. Some people accept fears, others are crippled by them. If you try to understand their irrational fear, you will not be able to.Social Anxiety Disorder - An extreme form of shyness, an intense fear of being judged or scrutinized. You might not go outside, it is introversion to a massive degree. As a result, they may be afraid of open places.Agoraphobia - Fear of open spaces. Usually
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