Psychological Disorders:
An Introduction
Defining Disorder
Psychological Disorders
•Psychopathology—scientific study of the origins,
symptoms, and development of psychological
disorders
•Psychological disorder - a pattern of behavioral
and psychological symptoms that causes
significant personal distress, impairs the ability to
function in one or more important areas of daily
life, or both
Psychological Disorder
• A “harmful dysfunction” in which
behaviors are maladaptive,
unjustifiable, disturbing, and atypical
MUDA
• A mnemonic device used to
remember the four attributes of a
psychological disorder
– Maladaptive
– Unjustifiable
– Disturbing
– Atypical
Maladaptive
• An exaggeration of normal,
acceptable behaviors
• Destructive to oneself or others
Unjustifiable
• A behavior which does not have a
rational basis
Disturbing
• A behavior which is troublesome to
other people
Atypical
• A behavior so different from other
people’s behavior that it violates a
norm
• Norms vary from culture to culture
Understanding
Disorders
Early Views of Mental Illness
• In ancient times, mental illness was
usually explained through a
supernatural model; the person was
possessed or a sinner
• During the Middle Ages treatment
methods were inhumane and cruel
Philippe Pinel (1745-1826)
• French physician who worked to
reform the treatment of people with
mental disorders
• Encouraged more humane treatment
Understanding
Disorders:
The Medical Model
The Medical Model
• Diseases have physical causes that can be
diagnosed, treated, and in most cases,
cured.
• Psychological disorders can be diagnosed
based on their symptoms and treated or
cured through therapy.
• Psychological disorders are similar to a
physical illness.
Understanding
Disorders:
The
Bio-Psycho-Social
Model
Bio-Psycho-Social Model
• Perspective of mental illness which
assumes that biological,
psychological, and sociocultural
factors combine and interact to
produce psychological disorders
Bio-Psycho-Social Perspective
Classifying Disorders
DSM-IV
• Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental
Disorders – Fourth Edition
• Published by the American Psychiatric
Association
• The text of the DSM-IV revised, hence “TR”
(text revision) at the end
• Lists and describes all the currently accepted
specific symptoms and diagnostic guidelines
for 250 specific psychological disorders
• DSM 5 is set to be released in May 22, 2013
Diagnosis
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental
Disorders (DSM-IV-TR)—describes
specific symptoms and diagnostic
guidelines for psychological disorders
– Provides a common language to label mental
disorders
– Comprehensive guidelines to help diagnose
mental disorders
DSM-IV-TR
• Divides mental disorders into 17
major categories
• Includes the symptoms but not the
causes of each disease
• Has changed significantly since the
first edition
Labeling Stigmas
• Studies show a clear bias against people
diagnosed with mental disorders.
• Rosenhan Study – “normal” people pretended
to hear voices and checked into a mental
health facility then acted normally. Their
normal actions taken to be abnormal once
they were labeled schizophrenic.
Prevalence
• Approximately 48% of adults experienced
symptoms at least once in their lives
• Approximately 80% who experienced symptoms
in the last year did NOT seek treatment
– Many people who could benefit from mental health
treatment do not seek it.
– Most people seem to deal with symptoms without
complete debilitation
• Women have higher prevalence of depression and
anxiety
• Men have higher prevalence of substance abuse
and antisocial personality disorder
Gender Differences for Disorders
Prevalence of Mental
Disorders Worldwide
Americans with disorders
Are People with a Mental Illness as
Violent as the Media Portrays
Them?
• People with mental disorders are often depicted on TV
as helpless victims or evil villains who are
unpredictable, dangerous, and violent.
• One study indicated that, overall, former mental
patients did not have a higher rate of violence than a
matched comparison group.
• People with severe mental disorders who are
experiencing bizarre delusional ideas and hallucinated
voices do have a slightly higher level of violent and
illegal behavior than do “normal” people.