Abnormal Psychology Exam 1 Chapters 1-3 (Dykman) – Flashcards
Unlock all answers in this set
Unlock answersquestion
abnormal psychology
answer
The scientific study of abnormal behavior in an effort to describe, predict, explain, and change abnormal patterns of functioning.
question
norms
answer
A society's stated and unstated rules for proper conduct.
question
culture
answer
A people's common history, values, institutions, habits, skills, technology, and arts.
question
trephination
answer
An ancient operation in which a stone instrument was used to cut away a circular section of the skull, perhaps to treat abnormal behavior.
question
humors
answer
According to the Greeks and Romans, bodily chemicals that influence mental and physical functioning
question
asylum
answer
A type of institution that first became popular in the sixteenth century to provide care for persons with mental disorders. Most became virtual prisons.
question
moral treatments
answer
A nineteenth-century approach to treating people with mental dysfunction that emphasized moral guidance and humane and respectful treatment.
question
state hospitals
answer
State-run public mental institutions in the United States.
question
somatogenic perspective
answer
The view that abnormal psychological functioning has physical causes.
question
psychogenic perspective
answer
The view that the chief causes of abnormal functioning are psychological.
question
psychoanalysis
answer
Either the theory or the treatment of abnormal mental functioning that emphasizes unconscious psychological forces as the cause of psychopathology.
question
psychotropic medications
answer
Drugs that mainly affect the brain and reduce many symptoms of mental dysfunctioning.
question
deinstitutionalization
answer
The practice, begun in the 1960s, of releasing hundreds of thousands of patients from public mental hospitals.
question
prevention
answer
Interventions aimed at deterring disorders before they develop.
question
positive psychology
answer
The study and enhancement of positive feelings, traits, and abilities.
question
multicultural psychology
answer
The field that examines the impact of culture, race, gender, and similar factors on our behaviors and focuses on how such factors may influence abnormal behavior.
question
managed care program
answer
A system of health care coverage in which the insurance company largely controls the nature, scope, and cost of services.
question
scientific method
answer
The process of systematically gathering and evaluating information through careful observations to gain an understanding of a phenomenon.
question
case study
answer
A detailed account of a person's life and psychological problems.
question
correlation
answer
The degree to which events or characteristics vary along with each other.
question
correlational method
answer
A research procedure used to determine how much events or characteristics vary along with each other.
question
epidemiological study
answer
A study that measures the incidence and prevalence of a disorder in a given population.
question
longitudinal study
answer
A study that observes the same participants on many occasions over a long period of time.
question
control group
answer
In an experiment, a group of participants who are not exposed to the independent variable.
question
experimental group
answer
In an experiment, the participants who are exposed to the independent variable.
question
random assignment
answer
A selection procedure that ensures that participants are randomly placed either in the control group or in the experimental group.
question
blind design
answer
An experiment in which participants do not know whether they are in the experiment or the control condition.
question
quasi-experiment
answer
An experiment in which investigators make use of control and experimental groups that already exist in the world at large. Also called a mixed design.
question
natural experiment
answer
An experiment in which nature, rather than an experimenter, manipulates an independent variable.
question
analogue experiment
answer
A research method in which the experimenter produces abnormal-like behavior in laboratory participants and then conducts experiments on the participants.
question
single-subject experimental design
answer
A research method in which a single participant is observed and measured both before and after the manipulation of an independent variable
question
model
answer
A set of assumptions and concepts that help scientists explain and interpret observations. Also called a paradigm.
question
neuron
answer
A nerve cell.
question
synapse
answer
The tiny space between the nerve ending of one neuron and the dendrite of another.
question
neurotransmitter
answer
A chemical that, released by one neuron, crosses the synaptic space to be received at receptors on the dendrites of neighboring neurons.
question
hormones
answer
The chemicals released by endocrine glands into the bloodstream.
question
genes
answer
Chromosome segments that control the characteristics and traits we inherit.
question
psychotropic medications
answer
Drugs that primarily affect the brain and reduce many symptoms of mental dysfunctioning.
question
electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)
answer
A form of biological treatment, used primarily on depressed patients, in which a brain seizure is triggered as an electric current passes through electrodes attached to the patient's forehead.
question
psychosurgery
answer
Brain surgery for mental disorders. Also called neurosurgery.
question
id
answer
According to Freud, the psychological force that produces instinctual needs, drives, and impulses.
question
ego
answer
According to Freud, the psychological force that employs reason and operates in accordance with the reality principle.
question
ego defense mechanism
answer
According to psychoanalytic theory, strategies developed by the ego to control unacceptable id impulses and to avoid or reduce the anxiety they arouse.
question
superego
answer
According to Freud, the psychological force that represents a person's values and ideals.
question
fixation
answer
According to Freud, a condition in which the id, ego, and superego do not mature properly and are frozen at an early stage of development.
question
free association
answer
A psychodynamic technique in which the patient describes any thought, feeling, or image that comes to mind, even if it seems unimportant.
question
resistance
answer
An unconscious refusal to participate fully in therapy.
question
transference
answer
According to psychodynamic theorists, the redirection toward the psychotherapist of feelings associated with important figures in a patient's life, now or in the past.
question
dream
answer
A series of ideas and images that form during sleep.
question
catharsis
answer
The reliving of past repressed feelings in order to settle internal conflicts and overcome problems.
question
conditioning
answer
A simple form of learning.
question
operant conditioning
answer
A process of learning in which behavior that leads to satisfying consequences is likely to be repeated.
question
modeling
answer
A process of learning in which an individual acquires responses by observing and imitating others.
question
classical conditioning
answer
A process of learning by temporal association in which two events that repeatedly occur close together in time become fused a person's mind and produce the same response.
question
systematic desensitization
answer
A behavioral treatment in which clients with phobias learn to react calmly instead of with intense fear to the objects or situations they dread.
question
cognitive therapy
answer
A therapy developed by Aaron Beck that helps people recognize and change their faulty thinking processes.
question
self-actualization
answer
The humanistic process by which people fulfill their potential for goodness and growth.
question
client-centered therapy
answer
The humanistic therapy developed by Carl Rogers in which clinicians try to help clients by conveying acceptance, accurate empathy, and genuineness.
question
gestalt therapy
answer
The humanistic therapy developed by Fritz Perls in which clinicians actively move clients toward self-recognition and self-acceptance by using techniques such as role playing and self-discovery exercises.
question
existential therapy
answer
A therapy that encourages clients to accept responsibility for their lives and to live with greater meaning and values.
question
family systems theory
answer
A theory that views the family as a system of interacting parts whose interactions exhibit consistent patterns and unstated rules.
question
group therapy
answer
A therapy format in which a group of people with similar problems meet together with a therapist to work on those problems.
question
self-help group
answer
A group made up of people with similar problems who help and support one another without the direct leadership of a clinician. Also called a mutual help group.
question
family therapy
answer
A therapy format in which the therapist meets with all members of a family and helps them to change in therapeutic ways.
question
couple therapy
answer
A therapy format in which the therapist works with two people who share a long-term relationship. Also called marital therapy.
question
community mental health treatment
answer
A treatment approach that emphasizes community care.
question
multicultural perspective
answer
The view that each culture has a set of values and beliefs, as well as special external pressures, that help account for the behavior of its members. Also called culturally diverse perspective.
question
culture-sensitive therapies
answer
Approaches that seek to address the unique issues faced by members of minority groups.
question
gender-sensitive therapies
answer
Approaches geared to the pressures of being a woman in Western society. Also called feminist therapies.
question
idiographic understanding
answer
An understanding of the behavior of a particular individual.
question
assessment
answer
The process of collecting and interpreting relevant information about a client or research participant.
question
standardization
answer
The process in which a test is administered to a large group of people whose performance then serves as a standard or norm against which any individual's score can be measured.
question
reliability
answer
A measure of the consistency of test or research results.
question
validity
answer
The accuracy of a test's or study's results; that is, the extent to which the test or study actually measures or shows what it claims.
question
mental status exam
answer
A set of interview questions and observations designed to reveal the degree and nature of a client's abnormal functioning.
question
test
answer
A device for gathering information about a few aspects of a person's psychological functioning from which broader information about the person can be inferred.
question
projective test
answer
A test consisting of ambiguous material that people interpret or respond to.
question
personality inventory
answer
A test designed to measure broad personality characteristics, consisting of statements about behaviors, beliefs, and feelings that people evaluate as either characteristic or uncharacteristic of them.
question
response inventories
answer
Tests designed to measure a person's responses in one specific area of functioning, such as affect, social skills, or cognitive processes.
question
psychophysiological test
answer
A test that measures physical responses (such as heart rate and muscle tension) as possible indicators of psychological problems.
question
neurological test
answer
A test that directly measures brain structure or activity.
question
neuroimaging techniques
answer
Neurological tests that provide images of brain structure or activity, such as CT scans, PET scans, and MRIs. Also called brain scans.
question
neuropsychological test
answer
A test that detects brain impairment by measuring a person's cognitive, perceptual, and motor performance.
question
intelligence test
answer
A test designed to measure a person's intellectual ability.
question
intelligence quotient (IQ)
answer
An overall score derived from intelligence tests.
question
diagnosis
answer
A determination that a person's problems reflect a particular disorder.
question
syndrome
answer
A cluster of symptoms that usually occur together.
question
classification system
answer
A list of disorders, along with descriptions of symptoms and guidelines for making appropriate diagnoses.
question
empirically supported treatment
answer
A movement in the clinical field that seeks to identify which therapies have received clear research support for each disorder, to develop corresponding treatment guidelines, and to spread such information to clinicians. Also known as evidence-based treatment.
question
rapprochement movement
answer
An effort to identify a set of common strategies that run through the work of all effective therapists.
question
psychopharmacologist
answer
A psychiatrist who primarily prescribes medications.
question
manifest content
answer
Surface content or symbolic meaning of a dream. (Psychodynamic)
question
latent content
answer
Underlying conflict or true meaning of a dream. (Psychodynamic)
question
Neo-Freudians
answer
View the ego as capable of more awareness and having more control over Id.
question
organismic needs
answer
Infant's natural, in born sense of what is good for them or will make them happy. (gut-feeling)
