Psychological Problems and Mental Health Overview

Psychological Problems

• Stereotype: A negative label assigned to a person based on perceived differences.
• Prejudice: A preconceived opinion not based on reason or experience.
• Stigma: Negative assumptions and unfair judgments based on a characteristic or attribute.
• Discrimination: Unequal or biased treatment of different groups of people.
• Care in the community: Community care for individuals instead of hospitals.

Mental Health

• It is hard to define: Mental health is subjective and personal.
• Continuum model: Degrees of mental health, ranging from healthy to severely ill.
• Healthy: Normal mood fluctuations, sleep patterns, energy levels, and social activity.
• Reacting: Temporary struggles with sleep, energy, mood, and social interactions.
• Injured: More consistent struggles with mood, anxiety, and social withdrawal.
• Ill: Severe and persistent struggles, which could involve hospitalization and treatment by professionals.
• Actions to take at each phase: Healthy lifestyle, self-care, social support, and seeking professional care if needed.
• Mental health problems in people: Prevalence and incidence are measures that describe the number of people with these problems at a given time.
• Prevalence: The number of people with a mental health problem at a particular time.
• Incidence: The number of new cases of mental health problems within a given time period.
• Factors affecting Mental Health Problems - Mental health can be affected by factors like the time of the year, social inequalities, cultural differences, and diagnoses.

Jahoda (1958)

• Good mental health: High self-esteem, personal growth, autonomy, integrity, and accurate perception of reality.
• Low validity: Hard to embody all criteria of Jahoda well-being

Classification Changes

• ICD: International Classification of Diseases (WHO).
• DSM: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (APA).

Attitudes Towards Mental Health

• Negative attitudes: Attitudes surrounding mental health problems have changed since the 1959 mental health act.
• Language evolution: Shift to using 'mental health' instead of 'mental illness'.
• Understanding: Emphasis on understanding and empathy.
• Progress but still stigma: mental health issues are still a taboo topic despite better understanding and progress being made.

Effects on Society

• Public services: Increased demand on public services due to a rise in mental health problems.
• Care in the community: Community-based care instead of hospital-based care.
• Attitudes in society: Increase in societal acceptance and understanding.
• Legal changes: Laws were made to prevent discrimination and promote equality within society towards mental health and issues.

Schizophrenia

• Severe illness: Schizophrenia is a debilitating and potentially life-long mental disorder.
• Symptoms: Delusions, hallucinations, disorganized thinking, and negative symptoms like emotional flatness or lack of motivation.
• Social drift theory: Lower socioeconomic status can influence the development of schizophrenia.
• Biological factors: Significant genetic and biological factors play a role.

Depression

• Clinical Depression: Depressed mood caused by low serotonin levels and other factors.
• Symptoms: Low mood, fatigue, loss of interest, and changes in sleep patterns or appetite.
• ABC model: Activating event, belief, and consequence - cognitive theory.
• Rational/Irrational beliefs: Irrational beliefs can lead to negative emotions and trigger depression.

Social Rank Theory

• Evolutionary function: Depression suggests an evolutionary function to reduce social conflict.
• Social hierarchy: Lower social rank may be linked to an increased likelihood of depression.
• Criticism: Oversimplification and overlooking many other potential contributing factors to depression.

Core Study: Tandoc et al

• Facebook Use, Envy, and Depression: Increased facebook use is associated with higher levels of envy, which in turn may be linked to a higher probability of depression.
• Method: Online questionnaire using a Likert scale methodology.
• Results: Facebook usage, social media, envy and, in turn, depression were all negatively correlated.
• Key findings: Facebook use may lead to feelings of envy and, subsequently, depression.

Application: Treatments of Mental Health Issues

• Antipsychotics: Medication used to treat schizophrenia; typical and atypical medication.
• Psychotherapy: Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), used to treat depression; a way to better cope with symptoms of mental illness.
• Neuropsychology: Brain structure and function affect human behaviour.