Why it is so difficult to define abnormal behaviour.

• no one element of abnormality is sufficient in or of itself to define or determine abnormality
• changing values and expectations of society at large
• only a prototype model of abnormality exists to which normality is assessed

• to provide a nomenclature
• enable us to structure information in a more helpful manner
• organized information allows the disorders to be studied to learn more about their causes and treatments
• determines what mental health problems health professionals can address
• determines insurance reimbursements

• a clinically significant behavioural or psychological syndrome or pattern
• associated with distress or disability
• not simply a predictable or sanctioned response to a particular event
• considered to reflect behavioural, psychological, or biological dysfunction in the individual

• psychiatry based on Euro-American definitions
• language barriers
• cultural beliefs
• behaviours that deviate from the norms of the society in which it is enacted

• tells us about the distribution of diseases, disorders, or health-related behaviours in a given population
• it tells us about the number of new cases over a given time period

• hospitalization of a patient in a psychiatric unit of a general hospital or a private psychiatric hospital that specializes in mental disorders.
• Stays tend to be shorter in today's society institutions due to more effective medications and budget cuts

• requires that patients visit a mental health facility, or mental health practitioner, but the patient does not have to be admitted overnight

• clinical psychologist
• counseling psychologist
• school psychologist
• psychiattrist
• psychoanalyst
• clinical social worker
• psychiatric nurse
• occupational therapist
• pastoral counselor
• community menatal health worker
• alcohol or drug-abuse counselor

• Ph.D. in psychology
• specialization in both research and clinical skill
• Psy. D. in psychology plus 1 year internship in a psychiatric hospital or mental health center

• Ph.D. in psychology plus internship in a marital or student counseling setting
• normally deals with adjustment problems not involving severe mental disorder

• doctoral training in child-clinical psychology, with additional training in learning problems

• M.D. with psychiatry training in a 3 year residency at a mental health facility

• M.D. or PhD plus intensive training in the theory and practice of psychoanalysis

using case studies to develop and test therapy techniques within a scientific framework.

The same subject is studied over time.

1. A scientific approach to abnormal behaviour
2. Openness to new ideas
3. Respect for the dignity, integrity, and growth potential of all persons

• draw on concepts and research findings from a variety of scientific fields
• particular relevance are genetics, neuranatomy, neurochemistry, sociology, anthropology, and psychology

• science is progessive and cummulative
• knowledge builds on knowledge
• Need to be open to creativity and new ideas

• Study not only outsiders perspective of a psychological condition, but also that of the person experiencing it.

• speech or behaviour that appeared to have religious or mystical significance
• if a person became overactive or excited, engaged in behaviour contrary to religious doctrine

included magic, prayer, incantation, noisemaking, and the use of concoctions

• rejection of demonology
• classification of mental disorders into three categories- mania, meancholia, and phrenitis
• dream interpretation
• emphasis on natural causes, clinical observation, and brain pathology

Plato

• psychological phenomena a repsonse of the whole organism, reflecting its internal state and natural appetites
• emphasized the importance of an individual's intellectual and other abilities
• took into account sociocultural influences on behaviour and thinking
• conversational therapy
• hospital care

• descriptions of consciousness
• rejected the idea that mental disorders could be caused by psychological factors such as frustration and conflict
• adhered to Hippocrates' view of the role of bile in creating sickness

• contributed to the understanding of the nervous system
• divided causes of psychological disorders into physical and mental categories

• scientific inquiry was limited
• treatment characterized by ritual or superstition
• supernatural explanations for diseased grew in popularity
• influence of theology

• widespread occurence of simultaneous group behaviour disorders that were apparently cases of hysteria
• i.e. tarantism-dancing because of bite of a spider

All largely rejected superstitious explanations and inhumane treatment of mentally ill patients. 

Ridiculed as heretics for criticizing the cruel treatment of mentally ill

• patients exhibited
• poor nutrition
• poor sanitation
• abusive practices

• Removed chains of inmates as an experiment; behaviours improved
• humanitarian institution reformist

• Quaker, patients lived, worked and rested in a kindly religious atmosphere
• practiced kind acceptance
• still in existence today

• founder of American psychiatry
• transitional figure between inhumane and humane treatment for mental patients

• campaigned for forty years to change the deplorable treatment of the mentally ill in America
• opened up institutions across America and two in Canada

• Mesmer's use of hypnosis was a stepping stone

• Liebeault practiced hypnotism
• Berheim hysteria could be removed through hypnosis
• Charcot proposed a pathological basis, garnering attention for both biological and non-biological roots to mental illness

• central theme of the role of learning in human behaviour
• the study of directly observable behaviour and the stimuli and reinforcing conditions that control it can serve as a basis for formulating the scientific principles of human behaviour

• a form of learning in which a neutral stimulus is paired repeatedly with an unconditioned stimulus that naturally elicits an unconditioned behaviour
• after repetition the neutral stimulus becomes conditioned to elicit a conditioned response

• the consequences of behaviour influence behaviour
• behaviour is shaped when something reinforces a particular activity of an organism

• perpetuation of inaccuracies
• always open to reinterpretation
• extrapolating facts from written documents and surveys of the time, instead of direct observation
• linguistic differences, does possession mean what we interpret it to mean.
• bias

A necessary cause (cause x) is a condition that must exist for a disorder (disorder Y) to occur.

Eg. general paresis could not exist without contracted syphilis

Although not always sufficient to cause a disorder on its own, many variables may have to co-exist to create the disorder.

A cause that guarantees the occurrence of a disorder.

Eg. hopelessness is a sufficient cuase of depression 

A cause that increases the probability of a disorder developing but is neither necessary nor sufficinet for the disorder to occur. 

Eg. parental rejection increases the probablity that a child will later have difficulty handling close personal relationships.

Field of study focusin on the heritability of mental disorders and other psychologicla functioning.  Three methods used:

• The family history or pedigree
• the twin
• the adoption

Biopsychosocial viewpoint

Acknowledges the genetic activity influencing neural activity, which in turn influences behaviour, whtihc then influences the environment, but also that these influences are bidirectional.

environment-behaviour-neural-genetic