Study Guide: Psychological Disorders

Question 1

How prevalent are psychological disorders in the US?

Answer 1

• studies published in 1980s and early 1990s found psychological disorders in roughly ONE THIRD of the population; 44% of adult population will struggle with some sort of psychological disorder at some point in their lives.

Question 2

DIATHESIS-STRESS MODEL?

Answer 2

• attempts to explain behavior as a PREDISPOSITIONAL VULNERABILITY together with STRESS from life experiences.

Question 3

What types of psychological disorders are most common in the US?

Answer 3

• SUBSTANCE USE DISORDERS
• ANXIETY DISORDERS
• MOOD DISORDERS

Question 4

EPIDEMIOLOGY?

Answer 4

• study of distribution of mental or physical disorders in a population

Question 5

ANHEDONIA?

Answer 5

• inability to feel pleasure

Question 6

Types of ANXIOUS/FEARFUL personality disorders? (3) and which GENDER more susceptible?

Answer 6

• AVOIDANT: equal
• DEPENDENT: majority women
• OBSESSIVE-COMPULSIVE PERSONALITY: equal

Question 7

Types of ODD/ECCENTRIC personality disorders? (3) and which GENDER more susceptible?

Answer 7

• SCHIZOID: majority women
• SCHIZOTYPAL: pretty equal; a little more men
• PARANOID: majority men.

Question 8

SCHIZOID PERSONALITY DISORDER?

Answer 8

• can’t form social relationships; shows absence of warm, tender feelings towards others.

Question 9

SCHIZOTYPAL PERSONALITY DISORDER?

Answer 9

• shows social deficits and oddities of thinking, perception, communication that resembles schizophrenia.

Question 10

HISTRIONIC PERSONALITY DISORDER?

Answer 10

• overly dramatic; tending to exaggerate expressions of emotions; egocentric, seeking attention

Question 11

BORDERLINE PERSONALITY DISORDER?

Answer 11

• unstable in self-image, mood, interpersonal relationships; impulsive and unpredictable.

Question 12

Types of DRAMATIC/IMPULSIVE personality disorders? (4) and which GENDER more susceptible?

Answer 12

• HISTRIONIC: majority women
• NARCISSISTIC: majority men
• BORDERLINE: majority women
• ANTISOCIAL: majority men

Question 13

Etiology of somatoform disorders? (5)

Answer 13

• biological: tend to have irregularities in seratonin level (effect? cause?)
• behaviorist: childhood learning (my mother pays the most attention to me when i feel sick; you need to make sure that the attention-giving doesn’t reinforce the state of illness
• cognitive distortions
• severe stress
• significant cultural differences (esp. with conversion and hypochondriasis)

Question 14

Define DISORDER… (3)

Answer 14

• patterns of thought, emotion, behavior that RESULT in DISTRESS or IMPAIRMENT of social or occupational function
• “when does this get in the way of your capacity to live a full life?”
• i can’t go to work anymore, i can’t relate to my family anymore

Question 15

Epidemiology of CONVERSION disorders?… (3)

Answer 15

• strikes 2%
• tends to come on in early adolescence
• gender equal

Question 16

how to decide whether sth is a disorder…

• the three Ds?
• the three Cs

Answer 16

• DEVIANCE, DISTRESS, DYSFUNCTION. <– pretty vague (esp. deviance; what is difference b/w eccentric and disorder?)
• CONTENT, CONTEXT, CONSEQUENCES
• you have to draw the line…eccentric?disordered?criminal?…