Abnormal Psychology

1
Abnormal Psychology

• Introduction
• Defining terms
• History of psychopathology

2
What is abnormal?

• Popular definitions Crazy, insane, strange
• Statistical definitions Deviation from what is
  typical or common
• Norm-based or standard-based definitions
  Violating cultural expectations or rules causing
  discomfort
• Personalized definitions Subjective distress
• Maladaptive definitions Disability or dysfunction

3
Key aspects to abnormality

• Unexpectedness, disproportionality, or
  irrationality of behavior
• Meeting characteristics on the changeable list of
  disorders accepted within a culture.
• Harmful dysfunctions (Wakefield, 1992)

4
Mental health professions

• Clinical psychology
• Psychiatry and psychiatric nursing
• Psychoanalysis
• Clinical social work
• Counseling psychologists, pastors
• Special education and school psychology
• Therapeutic recreation, music therapy, art
  therapy
• Psychopathology research