Case Study Development and Theoretical Explanation

Assignment 2: Case Study Development and Theoretical Explanation

In today's world, stress is inescapable. Stress can be a major factor in physical and psychological illnesses. Stress is closely related to fear, panic, and anxiety. A number of relatively common psychological disturbances share symptoms that include anxiety as a central component. The somatic symptom disorders involve a preoccupation with the body or a medical illness. The dissociative disorders involve an alteration in consciousness or memory such as amnesia or, in an extreme case, the development of multiple personalities as in dissociative identity disorder.

Below is a Sample Case - Woody
Click to review the sample case (do not use Woody in your M2 A2 assignment analysis).

Click to download transcript 

Review the sample case. Download and study the guidelines for developing cases. Develop one original fictional case study that portrays a specific diagnosis within the categories of: anxiety, somatic symptom disorders, or dissociative disorders.

The case description must include all of the DSM criteria necessary to diagnose that disorder, but may also include additional symptoms not found within that diagnostic category. Include some demographic background of the fictional case subject. This portion of the assignment should be 1 to 1 ½ pages.

Mental health professionals are often trained in one or more theoretical orientations. Each theoretical orientation provides a specific insight into why a person acts the way he or she does. The theoretical orientation also guides the professional's choice of treatment options to address the symptoms presented by the individual to be treated. Several theoretical explanations of abnormal behavior have been described in your readings for this module. Some of these are biological, psychodynamic, behavioral, existential, cognitive, and sociocultural.

Identify the treatment approach for your case based upon the theory you have chosen to explain the disorder. Then in 2–3 pages, write your own theoretical analysis of case characteristics in relation to the disorder the case represents.

Write the case and theoretical analysis in a 3–4-page paper in Word format. Be sure to include an APA style title page and to cite the online course and the text applying APA standards