Psychology Final Exam Study Guide (Chapter 14)
Unlock all answers in this set
Unlock answersquestion
Most Common Psychological Disorders
answer
Substance abuse, anxiety, and depression.
question
Medical Model
answer
Perspective that views psychological disorders as similar to physical diseases; they result from biological disturbances and can be diagnosed, treated, and cured like other physical illnesses.
question
Psychoanalytic Perspective of Psychological Disorders
answer
This perspective attributes abnormal behavior to unresolved unconscious conflicts. According to Freud, psychological disorders result from the conflict between the unconscious sexual and aggressive instinctual desires of the id and the outward demands of society. Newer theories, referred to as psychodynamic theories, developed by Freud's followers such as Alfred Adler and Karen Horney, downplay the role of sexual and aggressive instincts and instead emphasize the role of the ego and interpersonal relationships in maintaining or restoring psychological health.
question
The Social Learning Perspective of Psychological Disorders
answer
Learning theorists (particularly B.F. Skinner and his successors) explain abnormal behavior as a result of the same learning processes nthat produce normal behavior-classical conditioning, operant conditioning, and social learning. A person's responses to stimuli in the environment and the consequences of these behaviors are what lead to abnormal behavior. For example, Howie Mandel learned to respond with fear to germs in his environment. Avoiding the germs with surgical masks or gloves reinforced his fear because this behavior reduced his anxiety about germs - a positive reinforcement. Thus, a person's past learning and modeling along with current experiences can explain psychological disorders
question
The Cognitive Perspective of Psychological Disorders
answer
This perspectives emphasizes the role of thoughts, expectations, assumptions, and other mental processes in abnormal behavior. For example, anxiety results from irrational assumptions or from believing that negative outcomes will occur despite one's best efforts. Think about the little voice inside of you that comments on your behavior. Does it encourage you to do well, or does it criticize you for your stupidity? Is it possible that such internal messages influence your behavior? The cognitive perspective maintains that they do.
question
The Humanistic Perspective of Psychological Disorders
answer
Humanists like Carl Rogers see abnormal behavior as resulting from a distorted perception of the self and reality. When people lose touch with their personal values and their sense of self, or when they fail to fulfill their basic biological and psychological needs, they cannot attain self-actualization. Instead, they experience personal distress and maladaptive behavior.
question
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM)
answer
A book published by the America Psychiatric Association (APA) that lists the criteria for close to 400 mental health disorders.
question
Axis 1 (Clinical Disorders)
answer
Major categories of mental disorders, including depression, anxiety disorders, phobias, amnesia, substance abuse, and schizophrenia.
question
Axis 2 (Personality Disorders; Mental Retardation)
answer
Lifelong conditions that negatively affect a person's ability to function. Divided into two major classes: mental retardation and personality disorders.
question
Axis 3 (General Medical Conditions)
answer
Physical problems or conditions - such as cancer diagnosis and treatment, diabetes, arthritis - that may influence the person's mental health and that must also be considered when medication is prescribed.
question
Axis 4 (Psychosocial and Environmental Problems)
answer
Psychosocial problems might include problems holding a job or staying in school, or lack of social support. Environmental problems might include physical or sexual abuse, or experiencing a traumatic event.
question
Axis 5 (Global Assessment of Functioning)
answer
A numerical scale for evaluating the person's level of functioning. A rating of 90 indicates a person who is functioning very well in all areas of life, has minimal symptoms, if any, and is experiencing only everyday problems. At a rating of 50, a person shows serious symptoms of one or more problems with relationships, work, or school, including possible suicidal thoughts and obsessional behavior.
question
Anxiety Disorder
answer
A disorder marked by excessive apprehension that seriously interferes with a person's ability to function.
question
Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)
answer
An anxiety disorder characterized by chronic, constant worry in almost all situations.
question
Panic Disorder
answer
An anxiety disorder characterized by intense fear and anxiety in the absence of danger that is accompanied by strong physical symptoms.
question
Agoraphobia
answer
An excessive fear of being places from which escape might be difficult or where help might not be available if one were to experience panic.
question
Phobic Disorder
answer
An anxiety disorder characterized by an intense fear of a specific object or situation.
question
Specific Phobia
answer
A persistent fear and avoidance of a specific object or situation.
question
Social Phobia
answer
An irrational, persistent fear of being negatively evaluated by others in a social situation.
question
Obsession
answer
A recurrent thought or image that intrudes on a person's awareness.
question
Compulsion
answer
Repetitive behavior that a person feels a strong urge to perform.
question
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
answer
An anxiety disorder involving a pattern of unwanted intrusive thoughts and the urge to engage in repetitive actions.
question
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
answer
An anxiety disorder, characterized by distressing memories, emotional numbness, and hypervigilance, that develops after exposure to a traumatic event.
question
Dissociative Disorder
answer
A disorder marked by a loss of awareness of some part of one's self or one's self or one's surroundings that seriously interferes with the person's ability to function.
question
Dissociative Fugue Disorder
answer
A disorder marked by episodes of amnesia in which a person is unable to recall some or all of his or her past and is confused about his or her identity; a new identity may be formed in which the person suddenly and unexpectedly travels away from home.
question
Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID)
answer
A disorder in which two or more personalities coexist within the same individual; formerly called multiple personality disorder.
question
Somatoform Disorder
answer
A disorder marked by physical complaints that have no apparent physical cause.
question
Hypochondriasis
answer
A somatoform disorder in which the person persistently worries over having a disease, without any evident physical basis.
question
Mood Disorder
answer
A disorder marked by a significant change in one's emotional state that seriously interferes with one's ability to function.
question
Major Depression
answer
A mood disorder involving dysphoria, feelings of worthlessness, loss of interest in one's usual activities, and changes in bodily activities such as sleep and appetite that persists for at least 2 weeks.
question
Dysphoria
answer
An extreme state of sadness.
question
Anhedonia
answer
Absence of pleasure from one's usual activities.
question
Dysthymic Disorder
answer
A mood disorder that is a less severe but more chronic form of major depression.
question
Bipolar Disorder
answer
A mood disorder characterized by both depression and mania
question
Mania
answer
A period of abnormally excessive energy and elation.
question
Cyclothymic Disorder
answer
A mood disorder that is a less severe but more chronic form of bipolar disorder.
question
Learned Helplessness
answer
The belief that one cannot control the outcome of events.
question
Ruminative Coping Style
answer
The tendency to persistently focus on how one feels without attempting to do anything about one's feelings.
question
Cognitive Distortion
answer
Thought that tends to be pessimistic and negative.
question
Schizophrenia
answer
A severe disorder characterized by disturbances in the thought, perceptions, emotions, and behavior.
question
Delusion
answer
A thought or belief that a person believes to be true but in reality is not.
question
Hallucination
answer
Perceiving something that does not exist in reality.
question
Disorganized Behavior
answer
A symptom of schizophrenia that includes inappropriate or unusual behavior in a situation such as silliness, catatonic excitement, or catatonic stupor.
question
Catatonic Stupor
answer
A disorder in motor behavior involving immobility.
question
Catatonic Excitement
answer
A disorder in motor behavior involving excited agitation.
question
Blunted Affect
answer
A lack of emotional expression.
question
Alogia
answer
Decreased quality and/or quantity of speech.
question
Avolition
answer
The inability to follow through on one's plans.
question
Personality Disorder
answer
A disorder marked by maladaptive behavior that has been stable across a long period and across many situations.
question
Antisocial Personality Disorder
answer
A personality disorder marked by a pattern of disregard for and violation of the rights of others with no remorse or guilt for one's actions.
question
Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD)
answer
A personality disorder marked by a pattern of instability in mood, relationships, self-image, and behavior.
