Psychology Disorders
Chapter 18—410--431
Standards: PSS6
Students will understand the causes and attributes of different mental disorders and the varying treatment options available to assist those who are
afflicted.
Psychological Disorder: A
harmful dysfunction in which
behaviors are “MUDA”
“MUDA”
• Maladaptive: destructive to oneself
or others
• Unjustifiable: does not make sense
• Disturbing: bothers other people
• Atypical: violates a cultural norm
The Medical Model
• Mental disorders are sicknesses
that have physical causes.
• They can be diagnosed, treated,
and (usually) cured.
Bio-Psycho-Social Model
• Biological, psychological, and
sociocultural factors combine and
interact to produce psychological
disorders
Bio-Psycho-Social Perspective
**How do “abnormal” thoughts and behaviors differ
from “normal thoughts and behaviors?
**Do most psychological disorders have biological
causes?
**What type of psychological disorders are there?
Know
What to Know
• 1
Learn
• 1
Read the Case Study p. 412
• Read about Guilty by Reason of Insanity.
• Where did the plea originate? What is it’s
background?
• What is the most famous recent case.
• Read the extra article (#9)
• Do you feel this is just?
• What reforms are being made?
Answer the Thinking Critically questions
to turn in.
Complete the following Organizer:
What are the three steps in
understanding psychological disorders?
Symptoms
Identifying
Classifying
DSM-IV
The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of
Mental Disorders
• A manual used
for classifying
psychological
disorders.
• Lists symptoms
but not causes
of each disease
The Diagnostic and
Statistical manual of
Mental Disorders
What is/causes anxiety
• Several kinds—check out the chart 414.
• Causes—
–
–
–
–
Depends on who you talk to…
Depends on the background information
Some can be “simply” recognized
Some are very complex
• What you need to remember is that the
anxiety is “REAL.”
• “Cowboy up” is not always a good answer.
Anxiety Disorders
• Definition--a general state of dread or
uneasiness in response to a real or
imagined threat
• Nervousness, inability to relax, concern
of losing control
• Trembling, sweating, shortness of
breath, feeling faint.
• Feeling anxiousness from time to time is
normal it’s only when it interferes with
your ability to have a normal life that it
becomes a disorder
Journal
• Write about something in your life that
may cause you anxiety and avoidance
behaviors that help reduce your anxiety.
• I can tell you about not going to “scary movies”
so I don’t have night mares
• Or avoiding places that may have snakes
• Or avoiding places that I know there is some
one there I don’t want to deal with
Anxiety: A vague feeling of
apprehension or nervousness
Types: 3
• Generalized Anxiety Disorder —
unrealistic worry about life
– Persistent, unexplained feelings of
apprehension and tenseness
– Last 6 months
– Finances, work, relationship problems , illness
– Some symptoms: feeling on edge, difficulty
concentrating, lack of sleep
• Common –-treatment not always sought.
Types: 2
• Panic Disorders
• Short period of intense fear or discomfort
• Shortness of breath, dizziness, rapid heart rate
• Fear of another attack
– Agoraphobia —fear of not being able to
escape places or situations (large crowds,
big places)
• Can lead to panic attacks
• Can lead to avoidance behaviors.
Types: 1
• Phobias —”Fear of”
– Claustrophobia—fear of enclosed places
– Acrophobia—fear of heights
– Social phobia—fear of social situations
• Being looked at and “caught out” real or
perceived.
• Leads to avoidance and a interference of a life
style
Phobias
Google: List of phobias….
Types: 4
• Obsessive-Compulsive disorder—
– Obsessions— unwanted thoughts, ideas or
mental images that occur over and over
– Compulsion—repetitive ritual behaviors
often involving checking or cleaning
something
• Sufferers usually know obsessions are
unfounded but the compulsions can help
the anxiety.
• Stress Disorders —As we’ve studied.
7 Greatness
Child Phobias
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
The Dentist
Food
Bugs/Dogs/Cats
School
Vomiting
Pigeon
Allergic
Reaction to
Peanut Butter
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/AnxietyDisorders/story?id=6887215&page=1
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
• http://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/video/obsessed--9848097
• Children with OCD—Prime Time
Part 1
http://abcnews.go.com/video/playerIndex?id=8253974
Part 2
http://abcnews.go.com/video/playerIndex?id=8253918
Part 3
http://abcnews.go.com/video/playerIndex?id=8253919
Part 4
http://abcnews.go.com/video/playerIndex?id=8253872
Part 5
http://abcnews.go.com/video/playerIndex?id=8253873
Freaky Phobias—kids / how to help…
http://abcnews.go.com/video/playerIndex?id=6897750
Explanations
• Psychoanalytical views —something has
been repressed and is now coming to the
conscious. (not widely accepted
anymore)
– Learning theorists believe phobias are
learned in childhood
– They believe that people avoid situations
where they occur which can lead to a
worsening.
Biological views
• Heredity MAY play a part.
• Twins have been studied
• Identical twins have a higher
incidence of having the same
disorders
• Studies have shown that children can
show the symptoms as parents.
• OR do we fear things our ancestors
did and that is passed down…
Personality Disorders
• Lasting, rigid behavior patterns that
seriously impair one’s social
functioning
• Divided into three clusters:
– Related to anxiety
– With odd and eccentric behaviors
– With dramatic or impulsive
behaviors
• So sensitive about being rejected
that they avoid personal relationships
• Behave in clingy, submissive ways and
display a strong need to be taken care
of
Paranoid Personality Disorder
• Deep distrust of other people,
which gets in the way of personal
relationships
• Detached, no social skills. Avoids
intimate interactions at all costs
• True hermits, preferring life
alone.
• Exhibit instability of emotions,
self-image, and relationships
• Often exhibit suicidal behavior
Antisocial Personality Disorder
• Absolutely no concern for the
rights or feelings of other people
• No conscience and no remorse
• Formerly called psychopath or
sociopath
Somatoform Disorders
• Psychological disorders in which
symptoms take a bodily form without
apparent physical cause
Hypochondriasis
• Believing that one is sick and suffering
physical symptoms without any
underlying physical cause .
• Create illness for attention?...
• Interpreting illness for attention..
• The illness may not be real but the
emotional/psychological need is…
Conversion Disorder
• A loss of physical
function due to high
anxiety.
• These physical
disorders are “real”
–blindness, paralysis,
etc.
• Unintentional
• An emotional
overload?
Major Depressive Disorder
A person, for no apparent reason,
experiences at least two weeks of
depressed moods, lack of interest
in activities, feelings of
worthlessness, sleep disturbance,
and other symptoms
Dysthymic Disorder
• A chronic state of low energy and
self-esteem that is a bit less
disabling than major depression
Bipolar Disorder
• Alternating between the
hopelessness of depression and an
overexcited and unreasonably
optimistic state of mania
• Formerly called manic-depressive
Causes
Psychological
• Source is earlier (real or
imagined) loss.
• Child internalizes
misdirected feelings
• Guilt, loss of self-esteem
leads to depression
• Perhaps learned
helplessness—nothing I can
do so….
• The past was out of their
control so will be the future?
OR!! We talk ourselves in to
depression!!!
• I really messed up…
• It’s my personality…
• It was my head cold…
• ____ is smarter than me…
(see pg. 425 for more info)
OR Everything is negative—
the world, this school, me,
you, which leads to feelings
of depression.
Biological
• Occurs in close relatives (about 25% of
population; )
• Twins—identical more than fraternal…
• So does this mean genetic…
• Scientists also studying neurotransmitters
melatonin and serotonin and their role in
depression
• Do imbalances lead to depression—
therefore can be treated with drugs?
• This study is hopeful…
Dissociative Disorders
and Schizophrenia
Dissociative Disorders
• The sense of self has become
separated (dissociated) from our
previous sense of who we are
Dissociative Amnesia
• Loss of memory in
reaction to a
traumatic event
• Example: soldiers
in combat
Dissociative Fugue
• Loss of identity and
travel to a new
location
• The person may
develop a new
identity and begin
a new life.
Dissociative Identity
Disorder
• A rare, controversial
disorder in which an
individual experiences
2 or more distinct,
alternating
personalities
• Formerly called
multiple personalities
Schizophrenia
• A group of severe
disorders characterized
by disorganized and
delusional thinking,
disturbed perceptions,
and inappropriate
emotions and actions
Symptoms of Schizophrenia
– Delusions (false beliefs)
– Hallucinations (false perceptions)
– Inappropriate emotions or
behaviors
Types of Schizophrenia
Causes of Schizophrenia
Genetics suggest a predisposition to develop
schizophrenia; it tends to run in families.
Remember the Iceberg?
A bit more about our
personality:
– Freud believed the ”Id” is
the personality we are
born with to satisfy our
basic needs. I’m hungry I
want to eat…
A refresher
before we go on…
– The Ego develops next—it
lives with and among the
rest of society. It understands our place among
others… We must share.
– The Superego is the last
personality to develop—it
has to do with our moral
beliefs—right and wrong.
I want to but maybe I
shouldn’t____
Think in these terms….
I’m hungry—I
want
ID
those last cookies.
Basic
Need
No I need to share.
SUPEREGO
It’s not
right to
take them Moral
all…
obligations
Wonder if anyone
EGO
else wants it or I
should just take it?
Recognizing a
place in
society
Back to the causes of Schizophrenia
Psychological
• Some psychologists
• Some psychologists
believe it is the id
believe family
overwhelming the ego
environment/conflict is
and psychological
at the root.
conflicts occur.
• Family pressure may
• Within the conflicts,
push a person toward
confusion between
the condition BUT does
reality and fantasy
not produce it….
occurs.
• Or so THEY believe.
• This idea falls in and out
of favor…
Biological
• Problems look to occur in the frontal lobe
(attention, memory, abstract, language)
• Perhaps a loss of synapses.
• What causes this—better said—what are
the risk factors
– Heredity—tends to run in family
– Complications during pregnancy and birth—
having the flu, maternal starvation
– Birth during winter……????????
• Wonder what that’s about?!?!?!
FYI
• "Seasonal variations in infectious
agents, sunlight exposure and vitamin D,
and the availability of nutrients have
been proposed as possible explanations
for the seasonality of births in
schizophrenia. However, to date, no
specific agent has been identified,"
conclude the authors.
http://www.schizophrenia.com/sznews/archives/001074.html
Very important Reading in the
book
• Mulitfactorial Model of Schizophrenia—
p 429
• Bottom line: Perhaps it is the “perfect
storm” of all/some/the “right”
circumstances to explain the disease…
• That’s my bet….
Just to show I’m equal
opportunity…
Autism
• Autism is
– one of a group of serious developmental
problems called autism spectrum disorders
(ASD)
– that appear in early childhood — usually
before age 3.
– symptoms and severity vary, all autism
disorders affect a child's ability to
communicate and interact with others.
• New data shows an average
of 1 in 110 children have an
autism spectrum disorder
(ASD).
• Studies also show that
autism is four to five times
more common among boys
than girls. An estimated 1 out
of 54 boys and 1 in 252 girls
are diagnosed with autism in
the United States.
Autism
• Delayed development - slow to speak
• Unusual or severely limited activities and
interests
• Repetitive movements - rocking, hair twirling
• Inflexibility with highly specific routines and
rituals
• Overly focused attention on specific objects
• Lines things up
• Hypersensitivity to sensory stimuli - e.g. taste,
sound, etc.
• Reduced sensitivity to pain
• Extraordinarily sensitive to sensations
• Self-mutilation
• Early symptoms of possible autism
– Regression - negative change from normal
early development into impaired abilities;
about 20% of cases have a regression
• Loss of language skills already acquired
• Loss of words
• Loss of social skills already acquired
– Tantrums
– Hyperactivity
– Savant abilities - rare gift of very unusual
abilities in music, math or other areas.
Autism
• Very early indicators that require
evaluation by an expert include:
• no babbling or pointing by age 1
• no single words by 16 months or two-word
phrases by age 2
• no response to name
• loss of language or social skills
• poor eye contact
• excessive lining up of toys or objects
• no smiling or social responsiveness
• Later indicators include:
• impaired ability to make friends with peers
• absence or impairment of imaginative and social
play
• stereotyped, repetitive, or unusual use of
language
• restricted patterns of interest that are
abnormal in intensity or focus
• preoccupation with certain objects or subjects
• inflexible adherence to specific routines or
rituals
Treatment
• Behavior and communication
therapies.
– Some programs focus on reducing problem
behaviors and teaching new skills.
– Other programs focus on teaching children
how to act in social situations or how to
communicate better with other people.
– Though children don't always outgrow
autism, they may learn to function well with
the disorder.
• Educational therapies.
– Children with autism often respond well to
highly structured education programs.
– a variety of activities to improve social
skills, communication and behavior.
.
Autism
• Medications. No
medication can
improve the core
signs of autism, but
certain medications
can help control
symptoms.
– Antidepressants may
be prescribed for
anxiety,
– antipsychotic drugs
are sometimes used
to treat severe
behavioral problems.