Psychological Disorders

Module Overview
• Defining Disorder
• Understanding Disorders
• Classifying Disorders
• Labeling Disorders

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Module 30: Introduction to Psychological Disorders

Defining Disorder
 Psychological Disorder
• A harmful dysfunction
in which thoughts,
feelings, or behaviors
are maladaptive,
unjustifiable,
disturbing, and
atypical.

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 Characteristics of Psych Disorders
• Maladaptive
– An exaggeration of normal, acceptable behaviors
– Destructive to oneself or others
• Unjustifiable
– Behavior which does NOT have a rational basis
• Disturbing
– A behavior which is troublesome to other people
• Atypical
– A behavior so different from other people’s behavior
that it violates a norm
 MUDA
• A mnemonic device used to remember
the four attributes of a psychological
disorder
–Maladaptive
–Unjustifiable
–Disturbing
–Atypical
 Module 30: Introduction to Psychological Disorders

Understanding Disorders
 The Medical Model
• The concept that mental illnesses have
physical causes that can be diagnosed,
treated, and in most cases, cured.
– Psychological disorders can be diagnosed based
on their symptoms and treated or cured through
therapy.
– Psychological disorders are similar to a physical
illness.
 Bio-Psycho-Social Model
• A contemporary perspective that
assumes biological, psychological, and
sociocultural factors combine and
interact to produce psychological
disorders.
– Studies the influences of nature and nurture and
their interaction
 Bio-Psycho-Social Model
• Bio – predisposition or hereditary
susceptibility to a disorder
• Psycho – one’s thoughts and thinking
patterns
• Social – expectations and influence of
culture
Bio-Psycho-Social Perspective
 Module 30: Introduction to Psychological Disorders

Classifying Disorders
 Classifying Mental Disorders
Psychology classifies disorders to:
1) Describe the disorder
2) Predict the future course of the disorder
3) Treat the disorder appropriately
4) Provide a springboard for research into
the disorder’s causes
 DSM-V
• The American Psychiatric
Association’s Diagnostic and
Statistical Manual of Mental
Disorders, fifth edition
– a widely used system for classifying
psychological disorders
– lists and describes all the currently accepted
categories of mental disorders
Module 30: Introduction to Psychological Disorders

Labeling Disorders
 Labeling Stigmas
• Studies show a clear bias against people
diagnosed with mental disorders.
Types of Psychological
Disorders

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 Module 31: Anxiety and Mood Disorders

Anxiety Disorders
 Anxiety and Anxiety Disorders
• Anxiety: a vague feeling of apprehension
or nervousness.
– Normal and everyone experiences it
• Anxiety disorder: where anxiety begins to
take control and dominate a person’s life
– MUDA
 Types of Anxiety Disorders
• Anxiety disorders are divided into:
–Generalized Anxiety Disorder
–Panic Disorder
–Phobia
– Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
–Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Anxiety Disorders
Module 31: Anxiety and Mood Disorders

Mood Disorders
 Mood Disorders
• Classification of disorders where there
is a disturbance in the person’s emotions
• Major types of mood disorders include:
–Major Depressive Disorder
–Bipolar Disorder
–Dysthymic Disorder
Mood Disorders
Module 32: Dissociative, Schizophrenic and Personality Disorders

Dissociative Disorders
 Dissociative Disorders
• Disorders in which the sense of self
has become separated (dissociated)
from previous memories, thoughts, or
feelings.
– Extremely rare and usually the result of
overwhelming stress
– Formerly Multiple Personality Disorder
 Types of Dissociative Disorders
• Three main types:
–Dissociative Amnesia
–Dissociative Fugue
–Dissociative Identity Disorder
Dissociative Disorders
Module 32: Dissociative, Schizophrenic and Personality Disorders

Schizophrenic Disorders
 Schizophrenia
• A group of severe disorders
characterized by disorganized and
delusional thinking, disturbed perceptions,
and inappropriate emotions and
behaviors.
– Is NOT one disorder but a family of disorders
– Is NOT “split personality”
– Occurs in about 1% of the population
Module 32: Dissociative, Schizophrenic and Personality Disorders

Schizophrenic Disorders:
Symptoms of
Schizophrenia
 Symptoms of Schizophrenia
• Symptoms of schizophrenia include:
–Delusions (false beliefs)
–Hallucinations (false perceptions)
–Inappropriate emotions or behaviors
Symptoms of Schizophrenia
Module 32: Dissociative, Schizophrenic and Personality Disorders

Personality Disorders
 Personality Disorders
• Psychological disorders characterized
by rigid and lasting behavior patterns
that disrupt social functioning.
• Divided into three clusters:
–Related to anxiety
–With odd and eccentric behaviors
–With dramatic or impulsive behaviors
Personality Disorders
 Module 33

Psychological Therapies
 Psychotherapy
• An interaction between a trained
therapist and someone who is seeking
to overcome psychological difficulties
or achieve personal growth.
– There are over 250 different types of therapy.
Four Major Types of Psychotherapy
• Most therapies can be divided into:
–Psychoanalytic
–Humanistic
–Behavioral
–Cognitive
 Psychoanalysis
• Freud’s theory of personality;
• also, a therapeutic technique that
attempts to provide insight into
thoughts and actions by exposing and
interpreting the underlying
unconscious motives and conflicts.
 Humanistic Therapies
• Client-Centered Therapy
– therapist uses techniques such as active listening
within a genuine, accepting, empathic environment
to facilitate the client’s growth.

• Nondirective Therapy
– Therapist listens without interpreting and does NOT
direct the client (patient) to any particular insight.
 Module 33: Psychological Therapies

Behavior Therapies
 Behavior Therapy
• Therapy that applies learning
principles to the elimination of
unwanted behaviors.
– Uses both classical and operant conditioning
– Primary concern is to eliminate the disorder’s
behavior, NOT find the cause of the disorder
 Module 33: Psychological Therapies

Cognitive Therapies
 Cognitive Therapy
• Therapy that teaches people new,
more adaptive ways of thinking and
acting.
– Based on the assumption that thoughts intervene
between events and our emotional reactions
 Cognitive Therapy
• Almost half of all therapist at a
university setting use cognitive therapies
Cognitive Therapy
Cognitive Therapy
Cognitive Therapy
Cognitive Therapy
Cognitive Therapy
Cognitive Therapy
 Group Therapy
• Having a therapist work with a number
of patients at one time
• Groups usually consist of 6 to 10 people
• Cognitive, behavior, and humanistic
therapists all can lead group therapies.
Comparison of Psychotherapies
Comparison of Psychotherapies
Comparison of Psychotherapies
Comparison of Psychotherapies
Comparison of Psychotherapies
 Eclectic Approach
• An approach to psychotherapy that,
depending on the person’s problems,
uses a variety of techniques from
multiple forms of therapy.
– Uses whichever therapy works best for the
problem the person has