Abnormal Psychology

PSYCHOLOGICAL THERAPIES
II
 Behavioural Therapy
 All behaviour, whether “normal” or “abnormal,” is learned through the
same processes of classical and operant conditioning.

 Action based, rather than i_____ based.

 Learning created the problem, and new learning can correct it.
Behavioural Therapy

 Action therapies based on the principles of classical and operant

conditioning
 Aimed at changing disordered behaviour without concern for the original c______
of such behaviour.
 Behaviour modification or applied behaviour analysis – the use of
learning techniques to modify or change undesirable behaviour and
increase desirable behaviour.
Treatments: Behavioural
Classical conditioning

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 Behavioural Therapy and Classical Conditioning

 Systematic desensitization
 behaviour technique used to treat phobias,
 list of ordered fears
 taught relaxation while concentrating on those fears.

 Phobic object or situation is a CS

 The client has l________ to fear it due to its pairing with fearful stimulus

 Pairing of the old CS (the fear object) with a new relaxation response, is
incompatible with the emotions and physical arousal associated with fear
 the person’s fear is reduced and relieved.
 Systematic Desensitization
 Three step process
1) Learning to relax
 Deep muscle relaxation
2) Construction of fear h_______
 Least anxiety provoking to most
anxiety provoking
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND

3) Working from least feared to

most feared
 Behavioural Therapy and Classical Conditioning

 A______ therapy - an undesirable behaviour is paired

with an aversive stimulus to reduce the frequency of the
behaviour.

 Rapid smoking technique

 Client must take a puff on the cigarette every five or six
seconds.
 Nicotine is toxic, produces nausea and dizziness in excess.
 Smoking becomes new CS that produces new and very
unpleasant responses (i.e., nausea and dizziness), rather than
pleasurable ones.
 Behavioural Therapy and Classical Conditioning

 Exposure therapy: introduce the client to situations

(under carefully controlled conditions) that are
related to their anxieties or fears

 In vivo, imaginal, virtual

 F_______ - Rapid and intense exposure to the fear-
provoking situation or object and prevented from making
the usual avoidance or escape response.
 Also known as exposure and response prevention.
Behavioural Therapy and Operant Conditioning

 Operant conditioning techniques:

 Reinforcement
 Extinction
 Shaping
 Modeling

 Reduce the frequency of undesirable behaviour and increase the frequency of

desirable responses.

 Results are q_______ than the more insight-oriented forms of therapy.

 Behavioural Therapy and Operant Conditioning

 M________ - learning through the observation and imitation of others.

 Participant modeling - model demonstrates the desired behaviour in a step-by-step,
gradual process while the client is encouraged to imitate the model.

 Reinforcement - the strengthening of a response by following it with a

pleasurable consequence or the removal of an unpleasant stimulus.
Behavioural Therapy and Operant Conditioning

 Token economy - objects called tokens used to reinforce behaviour

 Tokens can be accumulated and exchanged for desired items or
privileges.

 Contingency c_______ – a formal, written agreement between the

therapist and client (or teacher and student) in which goals for
behavioural change, reinforcements, and penalties are clearly stated.
 Behavioural Therapy and Operant Conditioning

 Extinction – the removal of a reinforcer to reduce the frequency of a

behaviour.
 T_____-out - person is removed from the situation that provides reinforcement for
undesirable behaviour,
Effectiveness of Behavioural Therapy

 Behaviour therapies can be effective in treating specific problems,

such as bedwetting, drug addictions, and phobias.

 More serious psychological disorders, such as severe depression or

schizophrenia, do not respond well overall to behavioural treatments,
although improvement of specific symptoms can be achieved.

 C_______ is one of the most effective tools in using both rewards

and punishments to mould behaviour.
Cognitive Therapy
 Cognitive therapy- focus is on helping clients recognize distortions in their
thinking and replace distorted, unrealistic beliefs with more realistic,
h_______ thoughts.

 Cognitive Distortions based on Beck’s Cognitive Therapy:

 Arbitrary inference
 Selective thinking
 Overgeneralization
 Magnification and minimization
 Personalization
Arbitrary Inference
 Drawing conclusions that is not based on any e________.
Selective Thinking
 Focusing on only o___ aspect of a situation while ignoring all other
relevant aspects.
Personalization
 Taking responsibility or b_____ for events that are unconnected to the
person
 Cognitive-Behavioural Therapies

 Cognitive-  Three goals:

behavioural therapy  Relieve the s________ and solve the problems.
(CBT) –  To develop strategies for solving future
problems.
 Action therapy
 To help change irrational, distorted thinking.
 Goal: help clients
overcome problems by
learning to think more
rationally and logically.
Rational-Emotive Therapy
 Rational-emotive behaviour therapy (REBT) - cognitive-
behavioural therapy in which clients are directly c_______ in their
irrational beliefs and helped to restructure their thinking into more
rational belief statements.
Success of CBT
 CBT has seemed successful in treating depression, stress disorders,
and anxiety.

 Criticized for focusing on the symptoms and not the c_______ of

disordered behaviour.
Group Therapy
 Gathering a group of clients with s______ problems together and
have them discuss problems under the guidance of a single therapist
Types of Group Therapy
 Family counseling (family therapy) - family members meet together
with a counselor or therapist to resolve problems that affect the entire
family.
 There is nothing wrong with one member alone but with the e______ family
Types of Group Therapy
 Self-help groups (support groups) - a group composed of people who
have similar problems and who meet together without a therapist or
counselor for the purpose of discussion, problem solving, and social
and e_______ support.
When is Group Therapy Useful?

 People who cannot a______ individual therapy

 Obtaining social and emotional support from other group members

 Useful for a person whose problems center around relationships with

others
 Disadvantage of Group Therapy
 Need to share the therapist’s time with others in the group.
 Lack of a private setting in which to reveal concerns.
 Possibility that s__ people will not be able to speak up within a group
setting.
 Inability of people with severe disorders to tolerate being in a group.
 Only effective in long term, and when used to promote skilled social
interactions rather than attempting to decrease the more bizarre
symptoms of delusions and hallucinations.
Effectiveness of Psychotherapy

 E________ therapies - therapy style that results from combining

elements of several different therapy techniques.

 Therapeutic alliance - the relationship between therapist and client that

develops as a warm, caring, accepting relationship characterized by
empathy, mutual respect, and understanding.
Biomedical Treatments
 Biomedical therapies – therapies that directly affect the biological
functioning of the body and b_____.
 Drug therapy
 Shock therapy
 Surgical treatments

 Psychopharmacology - the use of drugs to control or relieve the

symptoms of psychological disorders.
Drug Treatments
A____________ drugs - drugs used to treat psychotic symptoms such as
delusions, hallucinations, and other bizarre behaviour
Typical neuroleptics (e.g. haloperidol)
Block dopamine receptors in brain
Prolonged use may cause tardive dyskinesia

Atypical neuroleptics (e.g. aripiprazole)

Suppressing dopamine and block certain serotonin receptors

Partial dopamine agonist

Affects release of dopamine rather than blocking receptors
Drug Treatments
 Antianxiety drugs - drugs used to treat and calm anxiety reactions,
typically minor tranquilizers. Can be sedative and addictive. (e.g.
Valium)

 Antimanic drugs (mood stabilizers) - used to treat bipolar disorder

and include l________ and certain anticonvulsant drugs (e.g.,
carbamazepine)
Drug Treatments
 Antidepressant drugs - drugs used to treat depression and anxiety.
 Monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs)
 Blocks activity of monoamine oxidase, which breaks down mood-
controlling neurotransmitters norepinephrine, serotonin and dopamine
 Tricyclic antidepressants
 Increase activity of serotonin and norephnephrine by inhibiting
reuptake into the synaptic vesicles of the neurons.
 Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)
 Inhibit reuptake process of s________.
 Less side effects but takes 2 to 6 weeks to produce effects
Electroconvulsive Therapy
 Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) - biomedical therapy to
treat severe d___________
 Electrodes are placed on either one or both sides of a person’s head
and an electric current is passed through the electrodes that is strong
enough to cause a seizure or convulsion.
 Causes the release of a flood of neurotransmitters in the brain
resulting an almost immediate improvement of mood.
Psychosurgery
 Psychosurgery - surgery performed on brain tissue to relieve or control
severe psychological disorders.
 Prefrontal lobotomy - connections of the prefrontal lobes of the brain to the rear
portions are severed.
 Bilateral cingulotomy - an electrode wire is inserted into the cingulate g____
area of the brain with the guidance of a magnetic resonance imaging machine
for the purpose of destroying that area of brain tissue with an electric current.
 Effective in ⅓ to ½ of cases of major depression, bipolar disorder and certain
forms of OCD.
Virtual Reality
LO 15.11 How Might Computers Be Used in Psychotherapy?

 Virtual reality is a software-generated three-dimensional simulated

environment with can be used in the treatment of phobias and P _ _ _.
Summary- Exercise: Match the following therapy with the associated word

 Psychoanalytic  Drug
 Behavioral therapy  System problem
 CBT  Doing
 Humanistic  Thinking
 Family therapy  Understanding
 Psychiatrist  Feeling