PSYCHOLOGY

COLLEGE PHYSICS
Chapter 15Chapter # Chapter Title
PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDERS
PowerPoint Image Slideshow
EARLY EXPLANATIONS OF MENTAL ILLNESS
• In ancient times holes were cut in an ill person’s
head to let out evil spirits.
• Hippocrates believed that mental illness came from
an imbalance in the body’s four humors
• phlegm, black bile, blood, and yellow bile
• In the Middle Ages, the mentally ill were labeled as
witches.
• Mentally ill individuals were removed from society.
DEFINITIONS OF ABNORMALITY

Psychopathology: the study of abnormal behavior

Psychological disorders: any pattern of behavior that
causes people significant distress
• effects their ability to function in daily life
• effects thoughts, feelings, behaviors
• deviate from social norms
• statistically rare
WHAT MAKES A BEHAVIOR “ABNORMAL”?

1. Where does the behavior occur?: the social or

environmental setting of a person’s behavior
2. Is it causing distress?: emotional distress or
discomfort
3. Is it affecting their daily life?: anything that does not
allow a person to function within or adapt to the
stresses and everyday demands of life
DSM-5 LO 14.3 Types of Psychological Disorders

Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, Fifth Edition, (DSM-5):

manual of psychological disorders and their symptoms
International Classification of Diseases (ICD): an
international resource published by the World Health
Organization (WHO)
• currently in its tenth edition (ICD-10)
FIGURE 15.4
PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDERS/DIAGNOSES ARE RARE

The graph shows the breakdown of psychological disorders, comparing the percentage prevalence
among adult males and adult females in the United States. Because the data is from 2007, the
categories shown here are from the DSM-IV, which has been supplanted by the DSM-5. Most
categories remain the same; however, alcohol abuse now falls under a broader Alcohol Use
Disorder category.
TYPES OF DISORDERS

The DSM-5 describes about 250 different

psychological disorders
In a given year, about 26.2 percent of American adults
over age 18 suffer from a mental disorder
• only about 5.8 percent suffer from a severe mental
disorder
• common to suffer from more than one disorder at a
time: co-morbidity
FIGURE 15.5

Obsessive-compulsive disorder and major depressive disorder frequently occur in the

same person.
LABELING DISORDERS

Pros
• provide a common language to professionals
• establish distinct categories of diagnosis for treatment and
understanding
Cons
• overly prejudicial
• “psychology student syndrome”
THEORIES:
PSYCHOLOGICAL VIEWPOINTS OF PSYCHOPATHOLOGY

 Biological Model
 Psychodynamic
 Behavioral
 Cognitive
I. BIOLOGY AND PSYCHOPATHOLOGY

Biological model: psychological disorders have

biological or medical causes
• Due to changes in:
• Chemical (neurotransmitters)
• Structural (areas of the brain)
• Genes (genetic disorders)
FIGURE 15.13

Different regions of the brain may be associated with different psychological disorders.
OTHER PERSPECTIVES

 Psychodynamic theorists: abnormal behavior stems

from repressed conflicts and urges that are fighting
to become conscious (Freud)

 Behaviorists: abnormal behavior is learned (classical

and operant conditioning)

 Cognitive theorists: abnormal behavior comes from

irrational beliefs and illogical patterns of thought
DISORDERS OF ANXIETY, TRAUMA, AND STRESS
DISORDERS OF ANXIETY, TRAUMA, AND STRESS

Anxiety disorders: the main symptom is excessive or

unrealistic worry and fearfulness
Phobia: an irrational, persistent fear of an object, situation,
or social activity
• social phobia (social anxiety disorder): fear of interacting
with others or being in social situations that might lead
to a negative evaluation
• specific phobia: fear of objects or specific situations or
events
ANXIETY DISORDERS

Generalized anxiety disorder: excessive anxieties and

worries occur more days than not for at least 6 months
Obsessive-compulsive disorder: intruding, recurring
thoughts or obsessions create anxiety that is relieved by
performing a repetitive, ritualistic behavior (compulsion)
FIGURE 15.11

(a) Repetitive hand washing and (b) checking (e.g., that a door is locked) are common
compulsions among those with obsessive-compulsive disorder. (credit a: modification of
work by the USDA; credit b: modification of work by Bradley Gordon)
TAKING THE WORRY OUT OF EXAMS: WELCOME TO
FINALS WEEK

Test Anxiety
• Not yet recognized as a clinical disorder in the DSM-5
• Causes countless students considerable stress and
agony
To decrease anxiety:
• Determine why you want to do well on the test in the first
place
• Develop a strategy for controlling your cognitive state
and behavior, both before and during the exam
CAUSES OF ANXIETY DISORDERS

Biological explanations:
• chemical imbalances in the nervous system
• genetics
• more activity in amygdala and limbic system
Behaviorists:
• disordered behavior is learned through both
positive and negative reinforcement
Cognitive psychologists:
• excessive anxiety comes from illogical, irrational
thought processes
TRAUMATIC STRESS
Includes:
• Acute Stress Disorder (ASD)
• Post-traumatic Stress Disorder
(PTSD)

PTSD was first recognized in

soldiers who had engaged in
combat. Research has shown that
strong social support decreases the
risk of PTSD. This person stands at
the Vietnam Traveling Memorial
Wall. (credit: Kevin Stanchfield)
DISORDERS OF TRAUMA AND STRESS

Acute stress disorder (ASD): a disorder resulting from

exposure to a major, traumatic stressor
• symptoms include anxiety, dissociation, recurring
nightmares, sleep disturbances, problems in
concentration, and moments in which people seem
to relive the event in dreams and flashbacks
• lasting as long as one month after the event
DISORDERS OF TRAUMA AND STRESS

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

• Same symptoms as ASD
• * last for more than one month
• symptoms of PTSD may not develop until more than
6 months after a traumatic event
MOOD DISORDERS

Mood disorders are

characterized by massive
disruptions in mood. Symptoms
can range from the extreme
sadness and hopelessness of
depression to the extreme
elation and irritability of mania.
(credit: Kiran Foster)

Includes:
• Depression/Major Depressive
Disorder
• Bipolar Disorder
DISORDERS OF MOOD

Affect: the psychological term for emotion or mood

Mood disorders: disorders in which mood is severely
disturbed
• major depressive disorder: severely depressed
mood that comes on suddenly and seems to have
no external cause
• may include thoughts of death or suicide
• most common of diagnosed disorders of mood
DISORDERS OF MOOD

Mood Disorders (cont’d)

• seasonal affective disorder (SAD): a mood disorder
caused by the body’s reaction to low levels of sunlight
in the winter months*
• manic episode: a period of excessive excitement,
energy, and elation or irritability
• bipolar disorder: periods of mood that may range from
normal to manic, with or without episodes of
depression (bipolar I disorder), or spans of normal
mood interspersed with episodes of major depression
and episodes of hypomania (bipolar II disorder)
FIGURE 14.1 THE RANGE OF EMOTIONS
MOST PEOPLE EXPERIENCE A RANGE OF EMOTIONS OVER THE COURSE OF A DAY OR SEVERAL DAYS, SUCH AS MILD SADNESS, CALM
CONTENTMENT, OR MILD ELATION AND HAPPINESS. A PERSON WITH A MOOD DISORDER EXPERIENCES EMOTIONS THAT ARE EXTREME AND,
THEREFORE, ABNORMAL.
CAUSES OF MOOD DISORDERS

Biological explanations:
• look at the function of serotonin, norepinephrine,
and dopamine systems in the brain
• genetic origins
Behavioral theories:
• learned helplessness
Cognitive theories:
• distorted, illogical thinking
 FIGURE 15.16

Many medications designed to

treat mood disorders work by
altering neurotransmitter activity
in the neural synapse.
EATING DISORDERS

bulimia
nervosa
anorexi
binge
a
eating
nervosa
Eating
Disorder
s
EATING DISORDERS

Anorexia nervosa
• a serious eating disorder that is associated with an
intense fear of weight gain and a distorted body
image

Bulimia nervosa
• characterized by binges of eating followed by self-
induced vomiting

Binge-eating disorder
• also involves uncontrolled binge eating but differs
from bulimia
EATING DISORDERS

Anorexia nervosa (anorexia)

• a condition in which a person reduces eating to
the point that their body weight is significantly
low, or less than minimally expected
• in adults, this is likely associated with a BMI
<18.5
EATING DISORDERS
Bulimia nervosa (bulimia)
• a condition in which a person develops a cycle of
“binging,” or overeating enormous amounts of food at
one sitting
• the person then using unhealthy methods to avoid
weight gain

Binge-eating disorder
• also involves uncontrolled binge eating
• differs from bulimia primarily in that individuals with
binge-eating disorder do not purge
EATING DISORDERS
Causes of eating disorders
• greatest risk factors appear to be someone being an
adolescent or young adult female
• genetic components appear to be involved in eating
disorders
• less common in non-Western cultures
• different values placed on eating and on starvation for
socially-recognized reasons
PSYCHOTIC DISORDERS
PSYCHOTIC DISORDERS

Psychotic: the break away from an ability to perceive

what is real and what is fantasy

Schizophrenia
• severe disorder in which the person suffers from
disordered thinking, bizarre behavior, and
hallucinations
• the person is unable to distinguish between
fantasy and reality
SCHIZOPHRENIA

Delusions: false beliefs held by a person who refuses

to accept evidence of their falseness
Ex: delusions of persecution or delusions of
grandeur (or grandiose delusions)

Hallucinations: false sensory perceptions, such as

hearing voices that do not really exist
CAUSES OF SCHIZOPHRENIA

Biological explanations of schizophrenia:

• focus on dopamine
• structural defects in the brain
• Inflammation
• genetic influences

Stress-vulnerability model: assumes a biological

sensitivity, or vulnerability, to a certain disorder that
will develop under the right conditions of
environmental or emotional stress
FIGURE 15.8

A person’s risk of developing schizophrenia increases if a relative has schizophrenia.

The closer the genetic relationship, the higher the risk.
Figure 14.2 Genetics and Schizophrenia
This chart shows a definite pattern: The greater the degree of genetic relatedness, the higher the risk of schizophrenia
in individuals related to each other. The only individual to carry a risk even close to that of identical twins (who share
100 percent of their genes) is a person who is the child of two parents with schizophrenia. Based on Gottesman
(1991).
FIGURE 15.12

Those who suffer from hoarding disorder have great difficulty in discarding
possessions, usually resulting in an accumulation of items that clutter living or work
areas. (credit: “puuikibeach”/Flickr)
 MENTAL HEALTH, MENTAL WELLNESS

The Counseling Center

Library Building, Room 422
718-631-6370

Office Hours
Monday, Thursday and Friday, 8:45am to 5pm
Tuesday and Wednesday, 8:45am to 7pm

Counseling@qcc.cuny.edu
http://www.qcc.cuny.edu/counseling/index.html