Psychological Disorders

1
Psychological Disorders
How are they defined?
1. Statistical infrequency
2. Violation of norms
3. Personal distress
4. Disability / dysfunction
5. Unexpectedness
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Psychological Disorders
The DSM-IV
- the guide for diagnosing mental disorders
- subject to periodic revision
- homosexuality out (1973)
- PMS, caffeine withdrawal in?
- classification of disorders along 5 axes
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Psychological Disorders
The DSM-IV
Axis I
- childhood disorders
- delerium, dementia, amnestic disorders
- substance-related disorders
- schizophrenia / psychotic disorders
- mood disorders
- anxiety disorders
- somatoform disorders
- dissociative disorders
- sexual disorders
- eating disorders
- sleep disorders
- impulse control disorders
4
Psychological Disorders
The DSM-IV
Axis II
- mental retardation
- personality disorders
- "other conditions"
Axis III
- general medical conditions
Axis IV
- psychosocial adjustment
Axis V
- global assessment of functioning
5
Psychological Disorders
Theoretical Approaches / Paradigms
Psychoanalytic
- unconscious conflicts
Biological/Evolutionary
- physiological malfunction/maladaptation
Medical
- pathology/disease model
Cognitive/Behavioral
- misinterpretation/maladaptive behavior
Learning
- classical and operant conditioning
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Psychological Disorders
Theoretical Approaches / Paradigms
Diathesis-Stress Paradigm
- predisposition for disorder is genetic /
biological
- environmental stressors required to "activate"
disorder
7
Psychological Disorders
Theoretical Approaches / Paradigms
Political
- issue of labeling
- "sanity" is relative
- socioeconomic factors
8
Psychological Disorders
Anxiety Disorders
Generalized Anxiety Disorder
- 'free-floating' anxiety
Panic Disorder
- intense panic, derealization
Phobias
- persistent, irrational fear
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
- repetitive unwanted thoughts/actions
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Psychological Disorders
Anxiety Disorders
The role of learning
- conditioned fear
- generalization of conditioned fear
- negative reinforcement/fear reduction
- modelling/observational learning
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Psychological Disorders
Anxiety Disorders
The role of biology/evolution
- why no handgun phobias?
- genetic transmission of anxiety
- hyperaroused amygdala/frontal lobes
- serotonin
- lactate
- carbon dioxide