Abnormal Psychology WUSTL Exam 1

pathology of the mind, i.e. the symptoms and signs of mental disorders such as depressed mood, panic attacks, and bizarre beliefs

the application of psychological science to the study of mental disorders

a general term that refers to several types of severe mental disorders where the person is considered to be “out of touch” with reality

a set of characteristic features and symptoms that appear together, that represent a specific type of disorder

the definition of a mental disorder in terms of an objective evaluation of the person’s performance in the real world and hinderence to natural function

the values, beliefs, and practices that are shared by a specific community or group of people

the scientific study of the frequency and distribution of disorders within a population. Researchers of this are concerned with questions of frequency, commonality, and types of people

the number of new cases of a disorder that appear in a population over a period of time

the total number of active cases, old and new, that are present in a population during a period of time

the presence of more than one condition within the same period of time (ex alcoholism, major depression)

the branch of medicine that is oncerned with the study and treatment of mental disorders

concerned with the application of psychological science to the assessment and treatment of mental disorders.

a profession that is concerned with helping people to achieve an effective level of psychosocial functioning

an in-depth look at the symptoms and circumstances surrounding one’s mental disturance

a new prediction made by an investigator

the alternative to the experimental hypothesis. It always predicts that the experimental hypothesis is not true

a set of shared assumptions that includes both the substance of a theory and beliefs about how scientists should collect data and test hypothesis

biological, psychodynamic – Freud, cognitive-behavioral – Wilhelm Wundt/Skinner, humanistic

looks for biological abnormalities that can cause abnormal behavior – like general paresis being caused by syphilis

asserts that abnormal behavior is caused by unconscious mental conflicts that have roots in early childhood experience

oral (ego develops), anal, phallic (superego develops), latent, genital

referring to Freud’s theorizing

psychoanalytic theory – present at birth, houses biological drives, hunger; psychological drives: sex, and agggresion

psychoanalytic theory – develops in the oral (first) stage, the part of personality that must deal with the realities of the world as it attemps to fulfill id impulses as well as perform other functions. Operates on the reality principle

psychoanalytic theory – roughly equivalent to conscience, contains society standards of behavior

conflict between superego and ego

conflict between id and ego