Transcript Abnormal Psychology

Abnormal Psychology
So far, we’ve talked about
understanding the behaviors of
normal people.
What about people who behave in
what are clearly abnormal ways?
Perspectives on madness
• Posession by spirits
• Psychogenic hypothesis: Insanity as a
mental disorder.
• Somatogenic hypothesis: Insanity is caused
by a physical disease.
• Ex: Syphillis can cause general paresis
Anxiety disorders
• Characterized by an abnormal fixation on a thing
or thoughts.
– Phobia: Intense, irrational fear of something
• Conditioning: ex. Baby Albert
• Preparedness: Not all phobias are created equal
– Obsessive-compulsive disorder: Persistent internal
notions that something is wrong which cannot be
controlled.
– Generalized Anxiety Disorder
Mood disorders
• Characterized by debilitating emotional
states of mind
– Mania: Abnormally elevated mood; extreme
elation, with in inability to concentrate,
restlessness, irritability, and lack of inhibition
– Depression: Extreme dejection accompanied by
feelings of worthlessness.
– Bipolar disorder: Extreme and unexplained
mood swings from mania to depression.
Conversion disorders
• Characterized by extreme physical
symptoms, such as seizures or paralysis,
that have no discernable physical cause.
Dissociative disorders
• Thoughts and mental states seem to be
dissociated from the psyche, such that a
person is unaware of actions that the body
engages in.
– Multiple Personality Disorder
– Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
Schizophrenia
• Literally, “Fractured Mind”
• Characterized by a fragmented mental
existence. Thoughts do not follow a coherent
trail. The world lacks clear cohesion.
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Fragmented Thought
Fragmented attention
Withdrawal from social contact
Delusions
Hallucinations