Psychopathology

- behaviour that is considered abnormal as it violates social rules

- behaviour is governed by unwritten rules set by society as to what is acceptible 

- if you are abnormal you're considered to be a social deviant

IMPLICIT

flexible, some norms are unwritten social expectations that guide towards acceptable behaviour 

E.G.queing 

EXPLICIT

inflexible, norms that are written, breaking these are often punishable by law

E.G. stabbing someone 

Any behaviour which stops individuals from coping with everyday life, such people may not experience the usual range of emotions/ behaviours. Their behaviour may cause distress to them which leads to dysfunction.

Rosenhan et al- 7 features to be abnormal 

1. personal distress

2. maladaptive behaviour 

3. unpredictability 

4. irrationality

5. observer discomfort

6. violation of moral standards

7. unconventionality 

Jahoda- 6 criteria to be normal 

1. positve attitude towards self

2. self-actualisation

3. resistance to stress

4. autonomy

5. acurate perception of reality

6. environmental mastery 

The more criteria individuals fail to meet, the more abnormal they are 

Behaviour that deviates fromthe norm, the idea is that the less a behaviour occurs the more likely it is to be abnormal. the difference between normal and abnormal is QUANTITY not QUALITY, behaviour is judged on the mathmatical principles of normal distribution. 

Specific phobia- phobia of an object; such asan animal or body part or a situation such as flying or                            having an injection 

Social phobia- phobia of a social situation such as public speaking or using a public toilet

Agoraphobia- phobia of being outside or in a public place 

PANIC 

may panic in respone to phobic stimulus. Crying, screaming or running away

children may react differently, freeze or a tantrum 

AVOIDANCE

make an effort to avoid the phobic stimulus

can make everyday life hard, can interfere with work, educationand social life

ENDURANCE

sufferer remains in the presence of phobic stimulus while experiencing high anxiety

unavoidable in some situations, e.g flying 

ANXIETY

anxiety disorders, an unpleasant state of high arousal making it hard to relax 

can be long term, fear is immediate and unpleasant response to phobic stimulus 

ARACHNOPHOBIA

fear of spiders, anxiety will increase which is a general response to the situation 

UNREASONABLE RESPONSES

emotional responses go beyond what is reasonable, disproportionate to the danger presented 

SELECTIVE ATTENTION

keeping attention of something dangerous will help survival but not when fear is irrational 

hard to concentrate if phobic stimulus is present 

IRRATIONAL BELIEFS 

a phobic may hold irrational beliefs in relation to stimulus 

COGNITIVE DISTORTIONS 

phobics perception of stimulus may be distorted 

TWO PROCESS MODEL

ACQUISITION

• Classical conditioning- associating a neutral stimilus and unconditioned response
• E.G. Little Albert experiment, 9 month baby conditioned to fear white rats, fear then generalised to other furry objects

MAINTENANCE

• Operant conditioning
• Negative reinforcement- avoiding the phobic stimulus to avoidunpleasant situation

SYSTEMATIC DESENSITISATION

• anxiety hierachy- list of situations in order of amount of anxiety they cause.
• relaxation- therapist patient to relax as deeply as possible, breathing exercises
• exposure- exposed to phobic stimulus and use relaxation techniues. in vivo and in vitro.

FLOODING

• immediate exposure to worst fear
• 'cures' a fear very quickly, cant avoid the situation
• remain in state of high anxiety, until patient relaxes and 'overcomes' fear
• ethical issues

ACTIVITY  LEVELS

have reduced levels of energy making them lethargic, tend to then withdraw from work, education and social activities

DISRUPTED SLEEP/EATING

associated with changes to sleep, increased sleep = hypersomnia, decreased sleep = insomnia 

eating can increase/decrease leading to weight gain/loss

AGGRESSION/SELF-HARM

can often be irratable which is taken out on others or themselves

can display verbal or physical aggression 

POOR CONCENTRATION 

may find themselves unable to stick with a task they would usually enjoy

find it difficult to make decisions and can interfere with work 

DWELLING ON THE NEGATIVE

pay more attention to the negative aspects of a situation, bias to recalling negative events 

ABSOLUTIST THINKING

think of situations being all positive or all negative

LOWERED MOOD 

a feeling of sadness, describe themselves as worthless and empty

ANGER 

more negative emotions and fewer positive ones, can direct anger at others or themselves 

LOWERED SELF-ESTEEM 

like themselves less than usual, described as self-loathing 

BECKS COGNITIVE THEORY

• Faulty processing- attend to negatives of a situation and ignore the positives.
• Negative self schemas- negative veiw of ourselves.
• Negative triad- negative veiw of the self, world and furture.

ELLISS ABC MODEL

• A= actiating event- situations where irrational thoughts are triggered.
• B= beliefs- a range of irrational beliefs associated with situation.
• C= consequences- emotional and behavioural consequences to a situation and irrational thoughts.

COGNITIVE BEHAVIOUR THERAPY 

• begin by identifying problems and irrational thoughts that can be challenged

BECK'S COGNITIVE THERAPY 

• identify automatic negative thoughts about the negative triad 
• challenge these beliefs directly and test the reality of them
• can set homework, by investigating the reality of negative beliefs to provide evidence against irrational ideas 

ELLIS'S RATIONAL EMOTIVE BEHAVIUR THERAPY 

• extends on the ABC model, D= dispute, E= effect 
• identify and dispute irrational thoughts 
• involves arguement and challenging irrational beliefs
• change the irrational belief and break the link between negative life events and depression 

also encouraged to be more active and engage in enjoyable activities

BEHAVOURAL CHARACTERISTICS 

• compulsions- compelled to repeat a behaviur, compulsive behaviour completed to try and relieve anxiety 
• avoidance- avoid situations which can trigger anxiety 

EMOTIONAL CHARACTERISTICS 

• anxiety- unpleasant state of high arousal, casued by the urge to repeat behaviours 
• depression- low mood and lack of enjoyment in activities 
• guilt- irrational guilt 

COGNITIVE CHARACTERISTICS 

• obsessive thoughts- thoughts the recur over and over again, always unpleasant 
• how to deal with obsessions- adopt cognitive coping strategies, help manage anxiety and distract from everyday tasks
• insight into excessive anxiety- aware that their obsessions and compulsions are irrational

GENETIC EXPLANATION

• Candidate genes- specfic genes create a vulnerabilty to OCD. E.G. 5HT1-D, affects efficiency of transport of serotnin across synapses.
• Polygenic- several genes are involved. Genes associated with dopamine,serotonin, bothof which regualte mood.
• Different types of OCD- different combinations of genes cause OCD in different people.

NEURAL EXPLANATION

• Serotonin- low levels causes mood to be affected becasue correct info isnt relayed
• Decision making systems- abnormal functioning of the lateral parts of the frontal lobe, hoarding disorder

SSRIs

• prevent reabsorption and breakdown of serotonin
• increases levels in synapse, therefore stimulating post synaptic neuron

COMBINED THERAPIES

• Drugs often used alongside CBT

SSRI ALTERNATIVES

• Tricyclics- older type of antidepressant, has the same effect on serotonin as SSRIs. Reserved for patients who dont repsond to SSRIs.
• SNRIs- increase serotonin levels and noadrenaline, second line of defence for patients who dont respond to SSRIs