Psychopathology: Historical, Models, Research

• Psychopathology is the study of mental disorders.

Historical Perspectives

• Early civilizations attributed mental disorders to supernatural forces.
• Hippocrates proposed a biological basis for mental illness.
• Emil Kraepelin developed an early classification system for mental disorders in the 19th and 20th centuries.
• Sigmund Freud introduced psychoanalysis.
• Aaron Beck and others championed cognitive and behavioral approaches.

Models of Abnormal Behavior

• The One-Dimensional Model explains disorders through a single factor.
• The Multipath Model suggests disorders arise from multiple influences like biological, psychological, social, and sociocultural factors.
• Buffers or protective factors decrease the likelihood of developing a disorder.
• Risk factors increase vulnerability to developing a disorder.

Clinical Research, Assessment, and Diagnosis

• Comorbidity is the co-occurrence of multiple disorders in one individual.
• Categorical diagnosis helps standardize mental illness classification for better communication among professionals.
• Differential diagnosis is the process of distinguishing between disorders with similar symptoms.
• Reliability, in testing, means consistent results.
• Validity in testing means it measures what it is supposed to measure.

Anxiety and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders

• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) involves uncontrollable obsessions (intrusive thoughts) and compulsions (repetitive behaviors).
• Panic Disorder is characterized by sudden, unexpected panic attacks with intense fear.
• Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) involves chronic worry about multiple aspects of life.
• Hoarding Disorder is marked by difficulty discarding possessions, leading to excessive clutter.
• Specific Phobia involves intense fear of a specific object or situation.
• Agoraphobia is the fear of situations where escape might be difficult.
• Body Dysmorphic Disorder is an obsessive focus on perceived physical flaws.
• Anxiety is a future-oriented worry.
• Fear is an immediate response to a perceived threat.
• Exposure Therapy involves gradual exposure to feared situations to reduce anxiety.

Trauma and Stressor-Related Disorders

• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) involves flashbacks, nightmares, and heightened arousal after experiencing trauma.
• Acute Stress Disorder is similar to PTSD but lasts less than a month.
• Adjustment Disorder involves difficulty adjusting to a major life change.
• Allostatic Load is the cumulative burden of chronic stress.
• Chronic stress can weaken the immune system due to prolonged cortisol release.
• Prolonged Exposure Therapy, for PTSD, involves repeated exposure to traumatic memories in a safe setting.

Somatic Symptom and Dissociative Disorders

• Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) involves multiple distinct personalities within one person.
• The Sociocognitive Model of DID suggests DID is influenced by cultural and therapist suggestion.
• Conversion Disorder involves neurological symptoms without medical explanation.
• Illness Anxiety Disorder (Hypochondriasis) is a preoccupation with having a serious illness.
• Somatic Symptom Disorder is physical symptoms with excessive worry.
• Factitious Disorder involves faking illness for attention.
• Munchausen’s Syndrome by Proxy involves inducing illness in another person for attention.
• Dissociative Fugue involves sudden travel away from home with memory loss.
• Anterograde Amnesia is the inability to form new memories.
• Retrograde Amnesia is the loss of past memories.
• Interoceptive Exposure exposes individuals to bodily sensations linked to anxiety to reduce fear.

Depressive and Bipolar Disorders

• Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) involves persistent sadness, loss of interest, and fatigue.
• Bipolar I Disorder involves full manic episodes with possible depressive episodes.
• Bipolar II Disorder involves hypomanic episodes with major depression.
• Cyclothymic Disorder involves milder, chronic mood swings.
• Hypomania is a less severe form of mania, with increased energy and impulsivity.
• Manic Episodes involve elevated mood, hyperactivity, and risky behaviors.
• Rumination is repetitive, negative thinking.
• Women are more likely to be diagnosed with MDD, possibly due to hormonal and societal factors.
• Depression and anxiety are more common in women.
• Substance use and antisocial behaviors are more common in men.
• Beck’s Cognitive Triad states that negative thoughts about oneself, the world, and the future can contribute to depression.
• All mood disorders involve disturbances in mood, whether extreme sadness or extreme highs and lows.

Explore psychopathology: historical views, models of abnormal behavior, clinical research, assessment, and diagnosis including risk and protective factors. Learn about the one-dimensional and multipath models, and the significance of comorbidity in understanding psychological disorders.