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Abnormal Psychology Chapter 2-4
University of Guelph 3rd Year Abnormal Psychology
126
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Undergraduate 3
04/12/2012

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Term
What is mass madness?
Definition
the widespread occurrence of group behaviour disorders that were apparently cases of hysteria
Term
What is tarantism?
Definition
– a disorder that included an uncontrollable impulse to dance that was often attributed to the bite of the southern European tarantula or wolf spider.
Term
What is Saint Vitus dance?
Definition
When tarantism later spread to Germany and the rest of Europe where it was known as Saint Vitus dance
Term
What is lycanthropy?
Definition
a condition in which people believed themselves to be possessed by wolves and imitated their behaviour
Term
What is mass psychogenic illness?
Definition
-what mass hysteria is known as today
-sufferers mistakenly attribute bodily changes or sensations to serious disease
-sufferers mistakenly attributing bodily changes or sensations to serious disease
-Outbreaks generally occur after an environmental event or trigger
Term
What is the "index person" as it relates to mass psychogenic illness?
Definition
the first person to report symptoms, may be suffering from a genuine medical condition but misinterprets the significance of symptoms, people nearby learn of this concern, become anxious, and possibly find the symptoms in themselves even though they may just be normal bodily reactions
Term
How were exorcisms performed when trying to cure the mentally ill in the Middle Ages?
Definition
gentle “laying on of hands” often joined with vaguely understood medical treatments
Term
What were early asylums like?
Definition
-primarily residences or storage places for the insane, with horrible conditions and the patients were treated like animals
-philosophy of treatment involved the belief that patients needed to choose rationality over insanity
-included powerful drugs, water treatments, bleeding and blistering, electric shocks, and physical restraints
Term
How did the Quakers contribute to the humane treatment of the mentally ill?
Definition
An English Quaker named William Tuke established the York Retreat, a pleasant country house, where mental patients lived, worked, and rested in a kindly, religious atmosphere
Term
What was Pinel's experiment?
Definition
-Phillipe Pinel was placed in charge of La Bicetre in Paris
-received permission to remove the chains from some of the inmates as an experiment to test his views that mental patients should be treated with kindness
-His experiment was a success and better living conditions were granted and harsh practices stopped
Term
What were the three types of needs that the moral management movement focused on?
Definition
-social needs
-individual needs
-occupational needs
Term
What did the mental hygiene movement method of treatment focus on?
Definition
the physical well-being of hospitalized mental patients
Term
What did Dorothy Dix contribute to the mental hygiene movement?
Definition
-travelled throughout Canada and the U.S. condemning the horrible conditions in prisons and mental institutions
-headed the mental hygiene movement
-she directed the opening of two large institutions in Canada
Term
Did the military contribute to the advancement of mental health treatment?
Definition
yes:
-• The first mental health facility for treating mentally disordered war casualties was opened by the Confederate Army in the American Civil War
-psychiatrists in Germany worked with military administration, conducting research and training doctors to detect mental health problems among soldiers
Term
What was the term “alienists" used to refer to?
Definition
-Psychiatrists in the early 19th century
-they had little influence over the care of the mentally ill at the time
Term
What were the intentions behind deinstitutionalization?
Definition
-to give patients the benefits of leading a normal life with short term care in hospitals
-It was considered more human and cost effective
Term
Why did deinstitutionalization fail? Two reasons.
Definition
-However many former patients have not fared well in the normal community
-Many people living on the streets are homeless mentally ill
Term
What was the eugenics movement?
Definition
-Sexual sterilization of people with mental retardation and other disorders was seen as a way of improving the gene pool and reducing social problems
Term
What represented the first clear-cut conquest of a mental disorder by medical science?
Definition
-the malarial fever treatment of syphilis and paresis
Term
What is the psychoanalytic perspective?
Definition
-emphasized the inner dynamics of unconscious motives
Term
What is mesmerism?
Definition
-Mesmer reported that he removed hysterical anesthesias and paralyses by passing from on patient to the next and touching each one with his hands or his wand in a lilac robe
Term
What is a catharsis?
Definition
-a significant emotional release
Term
What is the unconscious?
Definition
-the portion of the mind that contains experiences of which a person is unaware
Term
What does free association involve?
Definition
-involved having the patients talk freely about themselves providing info about their feelings, motives, etc
Term
What are the four reasons that theories emerge?
Definition
1.To explain the cause of the problem
2.To identify the factors that maintain the problem
3.To predict the course of the problem; and
4.To guide the development of effective treatment for the problem
Term
What three things should draw someone to a theory?
Definition
-soundness
-refutabililty
-potential for contribution
Term
What is Etiology?
Definition
-a causal pattern of abnormal behavior
Term
What is a necessary cause?
Definition
-a condition that must exist for a disorder to occur
Term
What is a sufficient cause?
Definition
-a condition that guarantees the occurrence of a disorder
Term
Can a sufficient cause not be a necessary one?
Definition
-A sufficient cause may not be a necessary cause
Term
What is a contributory cause?
Definition
-one that increases the probability of the development of a disorder but is neither necessary nor sufficient for the disorder to occur.
Term
What are distal causal factors?
Definition
-causal factors occurring relatively early in life may not show their effects for many years
-may contribute to a predisposition to develop a disorder
Term
What are proximal causal factors?
Definition
-operate shortly before the occurrence of the symptoms of a disorder
-may be a condition that proves too much for a person and triggers the onset of a disorder.
Term
What is a reinforcing contributory cause?
Definition
-a condition that tends to maintain maladaptive behavior that is already occurring.
Term
A predisposition or vulnerability toward developing a disorder is termed ____.
Definition
-a diathesis
Term
What are diathesis-stress models?
Definition
- When many psychological disorders are believed to develop as the result of some kind of stressor operating on a person who has a diathesis or vulnerability for that disorder
Term
What is an additive model?
Definition
-individuals who have a high level of a diathesis may need only a small amount of stress before a disorder develops; but those who have a very low level of a diathesis may need to experience a large amount of stress for a disorder to develop.
Term
What is an interactive model?
Definition
-some amount of diathesis must be present before stress will have any effect
-someone with no diathesis will never develop the disorder, no matter how much stress he or she experiences
Term
What are protective factors?
Definition
-influences that modify a person’s response to environmental stressors, making it less likely that the person will experience the adverse consequences of the stressors
Term
What is resilience?
Definition
-the ability to adapt successfully to even very difficult circumstances.
Term
The term resilience has been used to describe three distinct phenomena. What are these phenomena?
Definition
1)good outcomes despite high-risk status
2) sustained competence under threat
3) recovery from trauma
Term
What does developmental psychopathology focus on?
Definition
-determining what is abnormal at any point in development by comparing and contrasting it with the normal and expected changes that occur in the course of development
Term
According to the biopsychosocial viewpoint which three factors play a role in psychopathology and treatment?
Definition
-biological factors
-psychosocial factors
-sociocultural factors
Term
What is a synapse?
Definition
-the site of communication between the axon of one neuron and the dendrites or cell body of another neuron
-a tiny fluid-filled space between neurons
Term
What are transmitters?
Definition
-chemical substances that are released into the synapse by the presynaptic neuron when a nerve impulse occurs
Term
What are the three ways neurotransmitter imbalances can be created?
Definition
-There may be excessive production and release of the neurotransmitter substance into the synapses causing a functional excess in levels of that neurotransmitter.
-There may be dysfunctions in the normal processes by which neurotransmitters, once released into the synapse, are deactivated
-there may be problems with the receptors in the postsynaptic neuron, which may be either abnormally sensitive or abnormally insensitive
Term
What are chemical circuits?
Definition
-Neurons that are sensitive to a particular neurotransmitter tend to cluster together, forming neural pathways between different parts of the brain
Term
Which four different kinds of neurotransmitters have been most extensively studied in relation to psychopathology?
Definition
1) norepinephrine (noradrenaline
2) dopamine
3) serotonin
4) gamma aminobutyric acid (GABA)
Term
What are monamines?
Definition
- neurotransmitters that are synthesized from a single amino acid (monoamine means one amine)
Term
Which 3 neurotransmitters fall under the category of monamines?
Definition
1) norepinephrine (noradrenaline
2) dopamine
3) serotonin
Term
What does Norepinephrine do?
Definition
-has been implicated as playing an important role in the emergency reactions our bodies show when we are exposed to an acutely stressful or dangerous situation
Term
What does Dopamine do?
Definition
-has been implicated in schizophrenia as well as in addictive disorders.
Term
What does GABA do?
Definition
-strongly implicated in reducing anxiety, as well as other emotional states characterized by high levels of arousal
Term
What are hormones?
Definition
-chemical messengers secreted by a set of endocrine glands in our bodies
Term
What does the pituitary gland do?
Definition
-the master gland of the body
-produces a variety of hormones that regulate or control the other endocrine glands
Term
What does activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal-cortical axis involve(3 things)?
Definition
-Messages in the form of corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) travel from the hypothalamus to the pituitary.
-In response to CRH, the pituitary releases adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH), which stimulates the cortical part of the adrenal gland (located on top of the kidney) to produce epinephrine (adrenaline) and the stress hormone cortisol
-Cortisol in turn provides negative feedback to the hypothalamus and pituitary to decrease their release of CRH and ACTH, which in turn reduces the release of adrenaline and cortisol. This negative feedback system operates much as a thermostat does to regulate temperature
Term
What does cortisol do?
Definition
-Cortisol mobilizes the body to deal with stress
Term
Genes consist of...?
Definition
-very long molecules of DNA and are present at various locations on chromosomes
Term
What are chromosomes?
Definition
-chain-like structures within a cell nucleus that contain the genes
Term
What are genes?
Definition
-carriers of genetic information that we inherit from our parents and other ancestors.
Term
What does polygenic mean?
Definition
-influenced by multiple genes
Term
What is a person’s total genetic endowment is referred to as?
Definition
-genotype
Term
What is a phenotype?
Definition
-The observed structural and functional characteristics of the genotype and the environment
Term
-The genotypic vulnerability that can shape a child’s environmental experiences is called _______.
Definition
-Genotype-environment correlation
Term
What is a passive effect?
Definition
-an effect on the environment resulting from the genetic similarity of parents and children
Term
What is an evocative effect?
Definition
-particular kinds of reactions from the social and physical environment that a child's genotype may evoke
Term
What is an active effect?
Definition
-the child’s genotype may play a more active role in shaping the environment
Term
When the child seeks out or builds an environment that is congenial this is known as _______.
Definition
-niche building
Term
What is the genotype-environment interaction?
Definition
-people with different genotypes may be differentially sensitive or susceptible to their environments
Term
What is behaviour genetics?
Definition
-the field that focuses on studying the heritability of psychological disorders (as well as other aspects of psychological functioning)
Term
What are the three methods of behaviour genetics?
Definition
1) the family history (or pedigree method)
2) the twin method
3) the adoption method
Term
What are two more recent methods of behaviour genetics?
Definition
-linkage studies
-association studies
Term
What does the family history (or pedigree) method involve?
Definition
-observe samples of relatives of each proband or index case (the subject, or carrier, of the trait or disorder in question) to see whether the incidence increases in proportion to the degree of hereditary relationship
Term
What is a limitation of the family history (or pedigree) method?
Definition
-people who are more closely related genetically also tend to share more similar environments, which makes it difficult to disentangle genetic and environmental effects
Term
What is concordance rate?
Definition
-the percentage of twins sharing the disorder or trait
-if a given disorder or trait were completely heritable, one would expect the concordance rate to be 100%
Term
What is the adoption method?
Definition
-If there is a genetic influence, one expects to find higher rates of the disorder in the biological relatives of those with the disorder than in those without the disorder.
Term
Which are more important: shared influences or nonshared influences?
Definition
-nonshared influences
Term
What do linkage analysis and association studies attempt to determine?
Definition
-the actual location of genes responsible for psychological disorders
Term
What is neural plasticity?
Definition
-flexibility of the brain in making changes in organization and/or function in response to pre- and postnatal experiences, stress, diet, disease, drugs, maturation, etc
Term
What is the developmental systems approach?
Definition
-acknowledges not only that genetic activity influences neural activity, which in turn influences behavior, which in turn influences the environment, but also that these influences are bidirectional
Term
What is the libido?
Definition
-the basic emotional and psychic energy of life
Term
The libido operates on the ____ principle.
Definition
-pleasure
Term
What is primary process thinking?
Definition
-mental images and wish-fulfilling fantasies generated by the id
Term
What does the ego do?
Definition
-mediates between the demands of the id and the realities of the external world
Term
The ego operates on the ____ principle.
Definition
-reality
Term
What is secondary process thinking?
Definition
-The ego’s adaptive measures
Term
What is the superego?
Definition
-what we would consider to be a conscience
-mediates the desires of the id, the demands of reality, and the moral constraints of the superego
Term
-The superego is often referred to as the _______.
Definition
-executive branch
Term
What happens when the esires of the id, the demands of reality, and the moral constraints of the superego are unresolved?
Definition
-intra-psychic conflicts lead to mental disorder
Term
What is it called when the ego resorts to irrational protective measures?
Definition
-ego-defence mechanisms
Term
What is object relations theory?
Definition
-focuses on individuals’ interactions wit real and imagined other people (external and internal objects) and on the relationships that people experience between their external and internal objects
Term
What does "object" refer to in object relations theory?
Definition
-the symbolic representation of another person in the infant’s or child’s environment
Term
What is introjection?
Definition
-a child symbolically incorporates into his or her personality (through images and memories) important people in his or her life)
Term
What is the focus of interpersonal perspective?
Definition
-the unfortunate tendencies we have developed while dealing with our interpersonal environments
Term
What is does Bowlby’s attachment theory emphasize?
Definition
-the importance of early experience, especially early experience with attachment relationships, as laying the foundation for later functioning throughout childhood, adolescence, and adulthood.
Term
How is maladaptive behaviour viewed?
Definition
(1) a failure to learn necessary adaptive behaviours or competencies
and/or
2) the learning of ineffective or maladaptive responses
Term
What is dysrhythmia?
Definition
-rregular pattern in the brains electrical activity
Term
Why is an MRI useful?
Definition
-The images of the interior of the brain are frequently sharper with MRI because of its superior ability to differentiate subtle variations in soft tissue
Term
Why is a CAT scan useful?
Definition
-reveals images of parts of the brain that might be diseased
Term
What does a PET allow for?
Definition
-an appraisal of how an organ is functioning
-an appraisal of how an organ is functioning
Term
What is an fMRI?
Definition
-alternative to PET scans
-measures changes in local oxygenation of specific areas of brain tissue that in turn depend on neuronal activity in those specific regions
-Ongoing psychological activity, such as sensations, images, and thoughts, can be mapped
-often difficult to interpret
Term
Are fMRIs considered valued or useful in diagnosing mental disorders?
Definition
-no
Term
Which results are more reliable? Results from a structured or unstructured test?
Definition
-structured
Term
Which test yields more detailed information? Structured or unstructured?
Definition
-unstructured
Term
What are analogue situations?
Definition
-designed to yield information about the persons adaptive strategies
-might involve such tasks as staged role-playing
Term
Which scale is most widely used for recording observations in clinical practice and in psychiatric research?
Definition
-brief psychiatric rating scale (BRPS)
Term
What psychological tests are objective tests?
Definition
-The Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised
-Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale
-Wechsler Adult Intelligence scale
-MMPI
-
Term
What does a projective test consist of?
Definition
-they rely on various ambiguous stimuli, such as inkblots and vague pictures, rather than on explicit verbal questions, and in that the persons responses are not limited to the true, false or cannot say variety
Term
What are some examples of projective tests?
Definition
-Rorschach
-Sentence completion
-Thematic Apperception Test
Term
What are some criticisms of the MMPI?
Definition
-superficial, does not reflect the complexities of an individual
-dated
Term
What is the MMPI?
Definition
-A personality test
-tests are scored by comparing the answers to those of someone with a disorder and with the norm
Term
What is reliability as it relates to abnormal psychology?
Definition
-an index of the extent to which different observers can agree that a persons behaviour fits a given diagnostic class
Term
What is validity as it relates to abnormal psychology?
Definition
-the degree to which a diagnosis accurately conveys to us something clinically important about the person whose behaviour fits the category
Term
What is the dimensional approach to classification?
Definition
-it is assumed that a persons typical behaviour is the product of differing strengths or intensities of behaviour along several definable dimensions such as mood, emotional stability, aggressiveness, gender identity, anxiousness etc.
Term
What a prototype?
Definition
-a conceptual identity depicting an idealization combination of characteristics that more or less regularly occur together in a less then perfect or standard way at the level of actual observation
-aspects of our everday thinking and experience
Term
What is the prototypical approach?
Definition
-no member of a prototypically defined group will have all the characteristics of the defined prototype, even though it will at least have some
-• we commonly find that 2 or more disorders regularily occur together in the same psychologically disordered individuals – a situation known as comorbidity
Term
What is the “operational” method of defining the disorders?
Definition
-exact observations that must be made for a given diagnostic label to be applied
Term
What does Axis I consist of?
Definition
-the particular clinical syndroms or other conditions that may be a focus of clinical attention
-generalized anxiety disorder, depression, substance dependence etc.
Term
What does Axis II consist of?
Definition
-Personality disorders
-histrionic personality disorder, paranoid personality disorder or antisocial personality disorder
Term
What does Axis III consist of?
Definition
-General medical conditions
Term
What does Axis IV consist of?
Definition
-Psychosiocial and environmental problems
-stressors that may have contributed to the current disorder, particularuly those that have been present during the prior year
-a checklist approach for various categories of problems
Term
What does Axis V consist of?
Definition
-Global assessment of functioning
-clinicians indicate how well the individual is coping at the present time
-100 point Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF) Scale
Term
What is an acute disorder?
Definition
-disorders of relatively short duration, usually under 6 months
-In some contexts, it also connotes behavioural symptoms of high intensity
Term
What is a chronic disorder?
Definition
-long-standing and often permanent disorders
-can also be applied generally to low-intensity disorders, because long-term difficulties are often of this sort
Term
What does episodic or recurrent mean?
Definition
-unstable disorder patterns that tend to come and go, as with some mood and schizophrenic conditions
Term
What does serotonin do?
Definition
-found to have important effects on the way we think and process information form our environment, as well as on behaviours and moods. It seems to play a role in emotional disorders such as anxiety and depression, as well as in suicide
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