Abnormal Psych Chapter 1 PDF

Introduction to Abnormal Psychology Readings: Chapter 1 Abnormal Psychology – PSY 223 Learning Outcomes By the end of this class, you should be: Able to identify and describe criteria for abnormal behaviour, historical perspectives, the role of environment and biology, and beha...

Introduction to Abnormal Psychology Readings: Chapter 1 Abnormal Psychology – PSY 223 Learning Outcomes By the end of this class, you should be: Able to identify and describe criteria for abnormal behaviour, historical perspectives, the role of environment and biology, and behaviour models Able to identify, describe, and apply key terms What is Abnormal Psychology? Abnormal psychology is the branch of the science of psychology that addresses the description, causes, and treatment of abnormal behaviour patterns We are interested in studying abnormal psychology because: Abnormal behaviour affects virtually everyone in one way or another Abnormal behaviour patterns that involve a disturbance of psychological functioning or behaviour are classified as psychological disorders Thirty-three percent of Canadians will suffer from a psychological disorder in their lifetime Defining Abnormal Behaviour We Need to Ask 1. Is the behaviour unusual? 2. Does the behaviour violate social norms? 3. Does the behaviour involve a faulty interpretation of reality? 4. Does the behaviour cause personal distress? 5. Is the behaviour maladaptive? 6. Is the behaviour dangerous (to the person or to others)? Defining Abnormal Behaviour Culture Behaviour considered normal in one culture may be deemed abnormal in another - for example, anxiety & depression People in different cultures experience states of emotional distress, including depression and anxiety, rather than imposing our perspectives on them Defining Abnormal Behaviour Context Is this abnormal? Does it deviate from social norms? Depends on where and when the behaviour and attire occur Christof Stache/AP Photo/The CP Images Defining Abnormal Behaviour Most behaviours are on a continuum from normal to abnormal and a precise line delineating the threshold between the two is not clear Historical Perspectives The Demonological Model Mental health created by beings outside the body. Demon possession. Trephining: harsh practice of cutting a hole in a person’s skull as means to cast demon out through the hole. Done by basic tools by drilling or scrapping a round hole or chopping a square one. Dating back to pre-historic times, but also used (rarely) as recently as last century. Historical Perspectives The Medical Model Hippocrates & ‘ill humours’ 4 bodily fluids—blood, yellow bile, black bile, and phlegm—determined a person's temperament. Imbalance led to certain sicknesses dependent upon which humors were in excess or deficit. The humors were connected to celestial bodies, seasons, body parts, and stages of life Melancholic = Depression Phlegmatic = akin to Psychotic Sanguine = Hysterical Choleric = Obsessive Early theory that classified mental health and attributed it to underlying biological processes Historical Perspectives Medieval Times Exorcism. The religious practise of evicting demons or spirits from a person without necessarily drilling a hole in the head. (rarely but still used today). Core belief was demonology, that mental imbalance was to due spirit or demon control.  Historical Perspectives Witchcraft Malleus Maleficarum. A treatise on witchcraft written by the Catholic Church. ‘Black Magic’ spells cast on others created a variety of physical and mental health issues. Similarly, ‘White Magic’ spells were cast to heal or protect. Spells were cast though chants, herbs, rituals, made up potions, etc. Usually done clandestine, out of sight from others. Historical Perspectives Asylums E.g., Bedlam (London UK) and Hotel Dieu (Quebec 1639) Jerry Cooke/Science Source Historical Perspectives Institutions became very popular. A place to put people who were ‘mentally ill’ or just not desired. Institutionalization continued to this century. Many sanatoriums were constructed to house and contain people who were mentally ill on North America. Although conditions in the later institutions were far better. Historical Perspectives The Reform Movement: Moral Therapy Philippe Pinel (France), William Tuke (England) & Dorothea Dix (Canada & USA) Moral Therapy: provide humane treatment in an encouraging environment. Focus was to move away from the conceptualization of mentally ill people as ‘brutes’ or ‘undesirable’ and focus on their humanity. Sanatoriums and mental health hospitals often constructed with courtyards/gardens and advocated for a number of daily activities for patients. Inglorious history of mental illness To manage this increasing load, mental care shifted to controversial procedures. Lobotomy Immersing in ice water. Electrocution (early electroconvulsive). Eugenics. Sterilization of those deemed not desirable to reproduce. A eugenics movement swept across North America. It was made law in many states and two Canadian provinces. Alberta (1928, repealed in 1972) British Columbia (1933, repealed in 1973). A eugenics board was established for these provinces. A mental health hospital could apply to the eugenics board for permission to sterilize a patient Historical Perspectives Institutions were expensive. Despite early (and unsuccessful) strategies to treat mental health, institutional population grew. Overcrowding, lack of staff and huge expenditures resulted. Antipsychotic Drugs were especially researched in the 1960s and became widely available to psychiatry in the 1970s. In tandem with this, institutionalization was now seen as incarceration of the mentally ill and fell out of favour. Deinstitutionalization widely took off in the 1970s in favor of out-patient clinics in hospitals, where psycho-tropics medications were prescribed. Historical Perspectives The Community Mental Health Movement Canadian Mental Health Association 1963 In 1963 the full report — titled “More for the Mind”— stated that “mental illness should be dealt with in the same organizational, administrative and professional framework as physical illness.” Deinstitutionalization: discharge large numbers of hospitalized mental patients to the community Subsequently, Psychiatric homeless became an emerging issue. Historical Perspectives Mental Health Commission of Canada(MHCC) was established in 2007 Four main objectives of the commission. 1. To develop a national mental health strategy 2. To initiate an awareness campaign and reduce stigma associated with mental health issues. 3. To create a center of knowledge to exchange ideas and best practices. 4. To support research endeavors into mental health. Historical Perspectives Canadian Mental Health Promotion Mental health promotion is a proactive, holistic, multilevel, synergistic process that fosters resilience as one progresses toward an optimal sense of well-being Contemporary Perspectives The Biological Perspective Mental disorders: diseases of the brain with underlying biological defects or abnormalities (not evil spirits) Emil Kraepelin: Dementia Praecox:(now called schizophrenia) biochemical imbalance General Paresis: degenerative brain disorder that occurs during the final stage of syphilis Contemporary Perspectives The Psychological Perspective Organic factors alone could not explain abnormal behaviour Psychodynamic model & catharsis: Freud Resiliency and coping Mental health and awareness of personal condition Contemporary Perspectives The Sociocultural Perspective Psychological problems rooted in the social ills of society, such as poverty, lack of economic opportunity, rapidly changing social values and morals, and racial and gender discrimination Contemporary Perspectives Homeless in Canada Lack of available housing, transitional care facilities, and effective case management for homeless Canadians who have psychological disorders and addictions Estimated 200,000 Canadians are homeless annually Contemporary Perspectives Homeless in Canada Estimated 67% of homeless people have had a mental health problem in their lifetime A year-long study of Toronto homeless shelter users found that about one third (31%) of homeless people were experiencing both psychological and substance use disorders  Biological Current Psychological Perspectives Sociocultural Interactionist Biological Perspectives Biological Perspectives Biological Perspective vs The Medical Model One can adopt a biologically oriented perspective without using the terminology of the medical model A focus on biological factors Biological Perspectives Genetics: the science of heredity Gene: units found on chromosomes that carry heredity Chromosome: structures found in the nuclei of cells that carry the units of heredity, or genes DNA: the molecular structure of the genome comprising four organic compounds: Adenine, Thymine, Cytosine, Guanine Biological Perspectives Genetics Human Genome: all the genetic material encoded in the DNA (2.8 billion base pairs) Epigenetics: the study of the heritable and acquired changes in gene Stem Cells: biological cells that can divide (through mitosis) and differentiate into diverse specialized cell types Biological Perspectives Figure 1.2: The genome and epigenome Biological Perspectives The Nervous System The Neuron Soma Dendrites Axon Terminals Figure 1.3 Anatomy of a neuron Biological Perspectives The Nervous System The Neuron Soma Dendrites Axon Terminals Figure 1.4 Transmission of neural impulses across the synapse Biological Perspectives The Nervous System Neurotransmitters Norepinephrine: excesses and deficiencies linked to mood disorders and eating disorders Acetylcholine: reduced levels linked to Alzheimer's Disease Dopamine: excessive levels linked to schizophrenia Serotonin: imbalances of which have been linked to depressive and bipolar disorders and anxiety Biological Perspectives The Nervous System Parts of the Nervous System Central nervous system- the brain and the spinal cord Peripheral nervous system- part of the nervous system that consists of the somatic nervous system and the autonomic nervous system The Nervous System Central Nervous System Hindbrain: medulla, pons and cerebellum Biological Perspectives Midbrain: lies above the hindbrain and contains nerve pathways linking the hindbrain to the upper region of the brain, called the forebrain Biological Perspectives Forebrain: includes structures such as the basal ganglia, cerebrum. As well as the Limbic System: Which includes amygdala, hippocampus, thalamus and hypothalamus Biological Perspectives Reticular activating system (RAS): starts in the hindbrain and rises through the midbrain into the lower part of the forebrain RAS: weblike network of neurons that play important roles in regulating sleep, attention, and states of arousal Biological Perspectives Nervous system has two main areas. Central: Brain and spinal Peripheral: Everything else. Biological Perspectives The Nervous System Peripheral Nervous System Somatic Nervous System: relays information from the sense organs to the brain and transmits messages from the brain to the skeletal muscles, resulting in body movements Autonomic nervous: regulates the activities of glands and involuntary functions, such as respiration, heartbeat, and digestion, Autonomic NS has two main parts. Sympathetic Parasympathetic Biological Perspectives The Nervous System Autonomic Nervous System (involuntary) Sympathetic Nervous System: Activity leads to heightened states of arousal. Fight or flight. Parasympathetic System: the division of the autonomic nervous system whose activity reduces states of arousal and regulates bodily processes. Gastrointestinal activity increases, muscles relax, heart rate slows. (rest and digest). Biological Perspectives The Cerebral Cortex Outermost layer of the brain responsible for higher mental functions, such as thought and use of language. Divided into left and right hemispheres Corpus Collusum: thick bundle of fibres that connects the right and left hemispheres of the brain Psychological Perspectives Psychological Perspectives Psychodynamic Models Sigmund Freud Psychoanalytic Theory The Structure of the Mind Unconscious Preconscious Conscious Figure 1.7 The parts of the mind, according to Sigmund Freud Psychological Perspectives Psychodynamic Models Sigmund Freud Personality Id: Pleasure Principle & Primary Process Thinking Ego: Reality Principle & Secondary Process Thinking Superego: Moral Principle Linked with a range of defence mechanisms Psychological Perspectives Pioneers of Behaviourism Ivan Pavlov John B. Watson B. F. Skinner Psychological Perspectives Ivan Pavlov Classical Conditioning Conditioned response (CR) Unconditioned stimulus (US) Conditioned stimulus (CS) Unconditioned Response (UR) Psychological Perspectives B.F. Skinner Operant Conditioning Reinforcement & Punishment Positive & Negative Reinforcers Positive & Negative Punishment Psychological Perspectives Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow Humanistic psychology emerged during the mid-twentieth century emphasizing the personal freedom human beings have in making conscious choices that give their lives meaning and purpose Self-actualization: inborn tendency to strive to become all they are capable of being Psychological Perspectives Humanistic Perspective Unconditional positive regard: valuing other people as having basic worth regardless of their behaviour at a particular time Conditional positive regard: valuing other people on the basis of whether their behaviour meets one’s approval Psychological Perspectives Neo-Humanistic Perspective Leslie Greenberg: Emotions as adaptive Emotional intelligence Emotion-focussed therapy International Network on Personal Meaning (INPM) Role of meaning in daily life Psychological Perspectives Cognitive-Behavioural Perspectives Albert Ellis Irrational beliefs about unfortunate experiences fosters negative emotions and maladaptive behaviour Ellis was one of the originators of Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy Psychological Perspectives Cognitive-Behavioural Perspectives Aaron Beck Depression may result from “cognitive errors” such as judging oneself entirely on the basis of one’s flaws or failures and interpreting events in a negative light Psychological Perspectives Cognitive-Behavioural Perspectives Albert Bandura Social-cognitive theory: emphasizes the roles of thinking, or cognition, and of learning by observation, or modelling For example: Bobo Doll Sociocultural Perspectives Sociocultural Perspectives Must consider the impact of social and cultural factors, such as ethnicity, gender and social roles, and poverty Sociocultural theorists seek causes of abnormal behaviour that may reside in the failures of society rather than in the person Downward Drift Hypothesis Sociocultural Perspectives Another view: other variables that influence both poverty and mental illness, such as discrimination, dysfunctional family relationships, interpersonal conflict, or a lack of social support networks Sociocultural Perspectives Mental Health Issues in Canadian Indigenous Communities Disproportionately higher rates major depression and anxiety posttraumatic stress disorder alcoholism and substance abuse sexual abuse and family violence chronic disease (heart disease and diabetes) lower life expectancy suicide Interactionist Perspectives Interactionist Perspectives No one theoretical perspective can account for the complex forms of abnormal behaviour Interactionist perspective: interaction of multiple factors representing biological, psychological, sociocultural, and environmental domains to explain abnormal behaviour Interactionist Perspectives Figure 1.10 The Diathesis-Stress Model Interactionist Perspectives The Biopsychosocial Model Dynamic interplay of three major systems or domains two INTERNAL systems: biological and psychological one EXTERNAL system: sociocultural and environmental factors Medical Model History Mental Education Illness 63  Recovery Model Values & Beliefs PERSON Work 64 Outcomes Revisited It is now the end of class, and you should be: Able to identify and describe criteria for abnormal behaviour, historical perspectives, the role of environment and biology, and behaviour models Able to identify, describe, and apply key terms What’s Next? Assessment, Classification, and Treatment of Abnormal Behaviour Chapter 2 Anxiety, Obsessive-Compulsive, and Trauma- and Stressor- Related Disorders Chapter 3