Lesson 2 failure to function adequately

Question 1

Failure to function adequately definition (Rosenhan and Seligman)

Answer 1

This is a model of abnormality based on the fact that the person is unable to cope with day to day life such as having a job, or interacting well with others because they are experiencing psychological distress and discomfort. This will impact on their personal, social and occupational life.

Question 2

GAF scale

Answer 2

Global assessment of functioning scale

Question 3

What are the 7 criteria by Rosenhan and Seligman

Answer 3

SUMOVIV

Suffering - a person might be psychologically suffering because they have a psychological abnormality that is having a negative effect on them

Unpredictability and loss of control -abnormal individuals behaviour is often very variable and uncontrollable and is also in appropriate. However, most people sometimes behave like this. Behaviours that don’t suit the situation.

Maladaptiveness - maladaptive behaviour prevents an individual rom achieving major life goals such as enjoying good relationships with other people or working effectively

Observer discomfort - Those who see the unspoken rules of social behaviour being broken by others often experience some discomfort

Vividness and unconventionality - The ways in which abnormal individuals behave in various situations differ substantially from how most people behave

Irrationality and incomprehensibility - A common feature of abnormal behaviour is that it isn’t clear why anyone would choose to behave in that way. Behaviour is unclear and unjustified

Violation of moral and ideal standards - Behaviour may be judged to be abnormal when it violates established moral standards. However, the majority of people may fail to maintain those standards, which may be out of date or imposed by minority religious or political leaders

Question 4

Advantages of failure to function adequatelty

Answer 4

An advantage of this model is that using the GAF scale (Global assessment of functioning scale) means that psychologists can accurately assess the degree of abnormality and how well the patient is/or is not coping with their daily life. If the patient appears to not be coping very well in their social/occupational life then it could be concluded that the patient is not functioning adequately and is therefore abnormal.

Question 5

Disadvantages of failure to function adequately

Answer 5

1. A disadvantage of using Failure to Function Adequately as a definition of abnormality is that abnormality is not always accompanied by dysfunction. Some people do have a psychological abnormality, but they still appear to lead a normal life and do not possess any of the 7 criteria proposed by Rosenhan and Seligman. An example is that Harold Shipman committed many murders, but still appeared to function adequately and normally in everyday life. On the other hand, some people might appear to not be functioning adequately at all, but they might actually be quite normal and just might be having a bad day! Therefore failure to function adequately might be an inaccurate definition of abnormality.
2. The 7 criteria used in this definition can be very problematic as they are very difficult to measure and analyse. For instance how can we really judge if someone is suffering or not? How much suffering should they be experiencing. The model is very subjective and lacks being scientific and objective which means that psychologists need to be cautious when using the model to define abnormality. There might also be occasions when some of the criteria should be adhered to because it would be the normal or right thing to do. An example is that if a close relative passes away, then it would be acceptable for people to show signs of suffering rather than not