Abnormal Psychology

Defining Abnormal

• Cultural Relativity
  • What is considered abnormal varies across cultures and time.
  • Example: Belief in witches was normal in the past; now, it is not.
  • Suicide: Normal in some cultures, abnormal in others.
• Evolution and Criteria
  • Changes with societal values, knowledge, and time.
  • Example: Homosexuality was considered abnormal 50 years ago but not today.
  • Criteria for abnormality:
    • Distress
    • Day-to-day functioning impairment
    • Rarity (uncommon behaviors)
    • Danger to self or others
    • Out of touch with reality (e.g., psychosis)

Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM)

• DSM-5
  • Current edition used for diagnosing mental disorders.
  • Provides a list of symptoms for diagnosis (e.g., Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder).
  • No theory of cause is discussed within DSM.
  • Initial DSM published in 1952, with continuous revisions.

Theories of Abnormal Psychology

1. Medical/Biological Theory

   • Biological causes (e.g., brain tumors, thyroid conditions).
   • Link between biological factors and mental illness (chemical imbalance, genetics).
   • Schizophrenia has a strong genetic component.

2. Psychodynamic Theory

   • Unconscious conflicts, often from childhood, cause abnormal behavior.
   • Associated with Freud’s psychoanalytic theory.

3. Behavioral Theory

   • Abnormal behaviors are learned through association, reinforcement, and punishment.
   • Classical conditioning, operant conditioning.

4. Humanistic Theory

   • Inborn potential for goodness hindered by environmental factors.
   • Includes Rogers' unconditional positive regard and Maslow’s self-actualization.

5. Cognitive Theory

   • Abnormal behavior caused by irrational, distorted thinking.

6. Biopsychosocial Model

   • Abnormal behavior results from the interaction of biological, psychological, and social factors.

Categories of Diagnoses

1. Psychosis/Psychotic Disorders

   • Out of touch with reality (e.g., schizophrenia).
   • Incoherent speech, emotional disturbances, hallucinations, and delusions.
   • Hallucinations: Perception without external stimulus.
   • Delusions: Incorrect perception of real stimuli.

2. Childhood Disorders

   • Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD): Common in children; refusal to listen or follow instructions.
   • Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD):
     • Inattentive, hyperactive-impulsive, or combined.
     • Short attention spans, impulsivity, hyperactivity.
     • Emotions are often very big.

3. Personality Disorders

   • Resistant to change, deeply ingrained in personality.
   • Narcissistic Personality Disorder:
     • Grandiosity, need for admiration, low self-esteem.
   • Antisocial Personality Disorder:
     • Lack of remorse, disregard for others, impulsivity (also known as sociopathy or psychopathy).
   • Borderline Personality Disorder:
     • Lack of a stable self-identity, intense emotions, fear of abandonment, may have history of childhood abuse.

• Diagnosis involves knowing symptoms and often relies on self-reporting.
• Therapy treatments are tied to the underlying theory of cause.