Overview
This lecture covers the history, definitions, and diagnostic criteria for psychological disorders, emphasizing major anxiety, obsessive-compulsive, and dissociative disorders.
Introduction & Caveats
- You are not qualified to diagnose or treat mental health disorders.
- Use provided resources if you or others need help; do not attempt informal diagnosis.
- This chapter constitutes 50% of the final exam; review the study guide and slides.
History of Psychological Disorders
- Trepanation: drilling skulls to release 'evil spirits' was an early treatment.
- Hippocrates proposed mental illness stemmed from imbalances in four bodily fluids ('humors').
- Middle Ages attributed mental illness to witchcraft or possession, leading to exorcism or execution.
- Dorothea Dix established the first mental health institutions, advocating for humane treatment.
- Freud theorized disorders resulted from imbalances among the id, ego, and superego.
- The modern biopsychosocial model considers biological, psychological, and social factors.
Defining Abnormality
- Statistical Deviance: Abnormality as statistical outliers (too much or too little behavior).
- Situational Context: Behavior judged against social norms.
- Subjective Discomfort: Excessive or absent emotional distress indicates abnormality.
- Maladaptive Functioning: Behavior interferes with daily activities and routines.
- The DSM-5 provides standardized criteria for diagnosing 250+ psychological disorders.
Anxiety Disorders
- Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD): Persistent, excessive worry and physical symptoms for 6+ months, not linked to specific situations.
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): Following trauma, symptoms include anxiety, nightmares, and dissociation lasting more than 1 month; common in military, assault victims, and children exposed to violence.
- Panic Disorder: Frequent, unexpected panic attacks with intense physical symptoms, often mistaken for heart attacks.
- Phobias: Irrational, persistent fear of specific objects, situations, or social settings without necessarily experiencing physical anxiety symptoms.
Obsessive-Compulsive and Related Disorders
- Obsessions: Intrusive, unwanted, recurrent thoughts, urges, or images.
- Compulsions: Repetitive behaviors performed to relieve anxiety from obsessions.
- Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD): Both obsessions and compulsions occur, with ritualistic behaviors temporarily relieving anxiety.
- Hoarding Disorder: Difficulty discarding possessions of no value, causing distress or impairment.
Dissociative Disorders
- Dissociative Amnesia: Inability to recall personal information without physical injury explanation.
- Selective Amnesia: Can remember some but not all events from a specific period.
- Dissociative Identity Disorder: Presence of two or more distinct personalities within one person; often results from severe trauma.
Key Terms & Definitions
- DSM-5 — Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition; standard for diagnosing psychological disorders.
- Dissociation — Feeling disconnected from self or surroundings, as if observing from outside.
- Obsessions — Repetitive, intrusive thoughts or urges.
- Compulsions — Repetitive behaviors or mental acts meant to reduce anxiety.
- Maladaptive — Behavior that impedes normal daily functioning.
Action Items / Next Steps
- Review full slides posted on Blackboard.
- Study and use the provided study guide.
- Reach out using provided resources if you or someone else needs mental health support.
- Prepare for continued discussion in the next lecture.