Abnormality

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  • ABNORMALIT-Y
    • CLINICAL PSYCHOLOG-Y
      • Main focus is abnormality
      • Seeks to define what makes a behaviour abnormal
        • Then to diagnose what the problem is so it can be treated
      • About mental illness and abnormality
    • DIFFICULT TO DEFINE
      • Some behaviours may be more common
        • Seen as normal in some places compared to others
      • People have different opinions about what is normal
      • Very difficult to be objective
      • Where is the cut off point?
      • Things change over time
        • Homosexualit-y becoming more common and accepted
      • Diagnosis needs to be consistent
    • STATISTICAL INFREUENCY
      • Focuses on 'rarity'
        • Rare behaviour is abnormal
          • Schizophrenia affects 1% of general population = rare = abnormal
      • If few people show a behaviour, it is rare
      • Most human traits can be distributed along a normal curve of distribution
        • If outside standard deviations = abnormal
      • Evaluation
        • Objective & quantitative
        • Cut off point
          • Can get treatment if abnormal
        • IQ test - male dominated
        • 130+ is more desirable but still classed as abnormal
        • Depression on increase
          • Symptoms wouldn't show up
            • no longer rare
        • Cultural variation of how you measure IQ
        • Need further tests
    • SOCIAL NORMS
      • What seems abnormal, is abnormal
      • People who behave in a socially deviant way are classed as abnormal
      • Society has rules and unwritten rules (norms)
        • If someone acts in a way that breaks the rules, we class it as abnormal
      • Evaluation
        • Need to consider time/history
          • Mental illness changes over time
        • Culture
          • In some cultures, what we class as abnormal is seen as normal
        • Context
        • Ethical problem of labelling someone because they're differeng
        • Simple definition
          • Know what is normal in society so is easy to spot abnormality
        • Very subjective

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