Individual Differences

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  • Created by: Rachel
  • Created on: 18-03-13 12:30
Abnormality
The term abnormality refers to behaviour and psychological functioning, which are considered different from the ‘norm’. It has 3 main definitions: Deviation from Social Norms, Failure to function adequately and Deviation from Ideal Mental Health.
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Biological Determinism
The belief that human behaviours are determined by innate biological characteristics rather than influences of environment and learning. They take the view that behaviours are a nature process rather than nurture.
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Catharsis
A process known as emotional releases. It is when an individual expresses an emotion from their unconscious mind and hence relieving earlier repressed memories. As a result, this makes the psychic energy available for healthy functioning.
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Classical Conditioning
Pavlov (1927). It is a form of learning based on the association between a neutral stimulus and a response, which is unconditioned.
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Cognitive–Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
A type of psychological therapy, which combines elements of the cognitive and behavioural approaches to treating psychopathology, The cognitive element focuses on the thoughts, attitudes, feelings and behaviour about themselves, others and real or im
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Ego
One of the three unconscious instinctive forces proposed by Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) in the psychoanalytic theory. Ego focuses on reality and it is able to delay gratification, encouraging the id to wait until the timing is appropriate.
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Ego defence mechanisms
Those are unconscious methods, such as repression, displacement and sublimation, which the ego uses to protect itself from any kinds of anxiety.
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Environmental Determinism
They view that much of our behaviour is determined by what we learn from living in our natural environment. It is a nurture process and there are two main conditionings that determine our behaviours: Classical and Operant Conditioning.
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Id
One of the three unconscious instinctive forces proposed by Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) in the psychoanalytic theory. Id focuses on pleasure and prompts behaviours that are infantile, basic and selfish.
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Neurotransmitters
Those are chemical messengers that transmit nerve impulses from one nerve cell to another across the synapse. Examples: Serotonin, dopamine and GABA
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Operant Conditioning
Skinner (1974). It is a form of learning in which learning new behaviours are based on the consequences of the past. Consequences such as gaining rewards or receiving punishments can modify and shape behaviour. Reinforcement is a consequence that st
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Overdetermined
Behaviour or symptoms having multiple causes.
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Reciprocal Inhibition
This is a process found in systematic desensitization, whereby two opposing emotional states such as panic and calmness conflict with each other and the stronger one prevails.
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Social Learning Theory (SLT)
Bandura (1973). This is an explanation of the way in which behaviour is learned by observing and imitating the behaviour of others in similar situations.
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Stress Inoculation Training (SIT)
Meichenbaum (1983). A form of CBT that is designed to change the way the individual thinks and behaves in potentially stressful situations and so it is viewed as a problem-focused approach. It has three phases: Conceptualisation, which involves the t
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Superego
One of the three unconscious instinctive forces proposed by Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) in the psychoanalytic theory. Superego is the moral part of the personality, and arises from learning what is right and wrong.
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Syndrome
A group of symptoms that collectively indicate or characterize a disease, psychological disorder, or other abnormal condition
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Psychopathology
It is a scientific study of mental illness or mental distress, or the manifestation of behaviours and experiences, which may be an indicator of mental illness or psychological impairment.
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Systematic Desensitization
Wolpe (1958). It is a type of psychological therapy for treating abnormality based on theories of classical and operant conditioning. It is assumed that learned behavior could be unlearned. This is a process which they confront feared objects or situ
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Psychoanalysis
It is a form of psychotherapy, originally developed by Sigmund Freud (1856-1939), which is intended to help patients become aware of long-repressed unconscious feelings and issues by facilitating the process of catharsis. Psychoanalysis has two aims:
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Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT)
It is a form of biological therapy and is usually used on severely depressed patients who are unresponsive to drug treatment. It involves inducing a brief seizure by passing a current through the non-dominant hemisphere of the patient’s brain.
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Psychodynamic Approach
It is an approach based on Freud’s psychoanalytic theory. He proposed that our behavior is driven by 3 unconscious motives, including the id, ego and superego. Also, the personality developed in stages, which he referred to as the psychosexual stages
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Biological Approach
It is an approach based on the view that psychological disorders are caused by biological and biochemical causes. Psychopathology is thought to result from one of the four causes: infection, genetic factors, biochemistry and brain damage.
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Behavioural Approach
It is an approach based on the view that psychopathology is environmentally determined and learned through classical and operant conditionings and social learning theory.
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Cognitive Approach
It is an approach based on the view that psychopathology is resulted from faulty cognitions about others, our worlds and ourselves. Two theorists that support this assumption are Ellis (1962) and Beck (1967).
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Repression
It is one of the ego defence mechanisms and it occurs when bad experiences or negative emotions are pushed into the unconscious in order to protect us from bad emotions.
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Denial
It is one of the ego defence mechanisms and it occurs when making yourself believe that something won’t happen when in fact it will.
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Reaction Formation
It is one of the ego defence mechanisms and it occurs when we adopt an attitude, which is directly opposite to our real feelings.
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Rationalisation
It is one of the ego defence mechanisms and it occurs when we try to explain our negative actions so that we won’t feel bad about them.
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Projection
It is one of the ego defence mechanisms and it occurs when unacceptable thoughts are dealt with by saying that thy are someone else’s thoughts.
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Displacement
It is one of the defence mechanisms and it occurs when the feelings are transferred from ourself onto something or someone else.
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Free association
It is one of the psychoanalytic techniques to facilitate the process of catharsis. In free association, the client says everything aloud no matter how bad it sounds, then the analyst looks for the things that the client said that could have betrayed
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Dream Analysis
It is one of the psychoanalytic techniques to facilitate the process of catharsis. Freud believed that the id expresses itself more freely in our dreams, so the dream must be interpreted to make the unconscious conscious.
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Transference
It is one of the psychoanalytic techniques to facilitate the process of catharsis. This is when the client transfer characteristics of significant others onto the analyst, and express repressed feelings towards the analyst. Doing so can reveal their
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Cultural Relativism
It is the idea that the behavior of the individual must be judged in terms of the specific laws, social norms and customs of their particular culture.
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Social Norms
Rules that a society has about how people should think and behave. The rules can be either explicit or implicit. While explicit generally means codes of conduct or laws and implicit means rules that we know such as respecting personal space.
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Failure to function adequately (FFA)
Rosenhan and Seligman (1989). This is one of the definitions of abnormality in which a person may be defined as abnormal if they show themselves unable to deal with demands such as taking care of themselves.
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Ideal Mental Health
Jahoda (1958). Jahoda proposed looking at the elements that make up a positive state of the mental health and that if one of the elements is lacking in a person, then he/she will be likely to have mental illness.
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Dopamine
– It is a neurotransmitter and is associated with a number of behaviours based on the biological approach. High levels of dopamine in our brain are link to schizophrenia.
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Serotonin
It is a neurotransmitter and is associated with a number of behaviours based on the biological approach. Low levels of serotonin are linked with depression, whereas high levels are links with anxiety.
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Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy (REBT)
Ellis (1962). It is a type of cognitive-behavioural therapy by making them aware of self-defeating beliefs and then modifying these in order to remove the unwanted states.
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Other cards in this set

Card 2

Front

The belief that human behaviours are determined by innate biological characteristics rather than influences of environment and learning. They take the view that behaviours are a nature process rather than nurture.

Back

Biological Determinism

Card 3

Front

A process known as emotional releases. It is when an individual expresses an emotion from their unconscious mind and hence relieving earlier repressed memories. As a result, this makes the psychic energy available for healthy functioning.

Back

Preview of the back of card 3

Card 4

Front

Pavlov (1927). It is a form of learning based on the association between a neutral stimulus and a response, which is unconditioned.

Back

Preview of the back of card 4

Card 5

Front

A type of psychological therapy, which combines elements of the cognitive and behavioural approaches to treating psychopathology, The cognitive element focuses on the thoughts, attitudes, feelings and behaviour about themselves, others and real or im

Back

Preview of the back of card 5
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