PSY360: Abnormal Psychology

Abnormal Behavior, Historical Perspectives on Abnormal

Behavior :Etiology and treatment

Dr. Sumaira Khurshid Tahira

(MSc, MPhil, Phd, Psychology)

Associate Prof

NNU,China

Abnormal Psychology

Abnormal and Normal Behavior

 The scientific study of abnormal behavior undertaken to describe,

predict, explain, and change abnormal patterns of functioning.

 Abnormality (or dysfunctional behavior) is a behavioral characteristic

assigned to those with conditions regarded to as rare or dysfunctional.

 Behavior is considered abnormal when it is atypical or out of the

ordinary, consists of undesirable behavior, and results in impairment in

individual's functioning.

Continue…

 Abnormality is the significant deviation

from commonly accepted patterns of

behavior, emotion or thought,

while normality is the absence of illness and

the presence of state of well being

What Is Psychological Abnormality?

Many definitions of abnormality have been proposed, yet none has won total acceptance

(Bergner & Bunford, 2014; Pierre, 2010). Most definitions share 4 features, often called “the

four Ds”:

Deviance

 From what?

From behaviors, thoughts, and emotions that differ markedly from a society's ideas about proper functioning

From social norms

◼Stated and unstated rules for proper conduct

 Judgments of abnormality vary from society to society as norms grow from a particular culture

They also depend on specific circumstances

Distress

 Behavior, ideas, or emotions usually have to cause distress before

they can be labeled abnormal .

 Not always the case

Examples of behavior that deviates from social norms but does not

cause distress: Clothing styles, Skydiving, bungee jumping

Culture plays a role in the definition of abnormality

Dysfunction

 Interferes with daily functioning

 Dysfunction alone does not necessarily indicate psychological

abnormality

Danger

 Behavior that is dangerous to oneself or others . May be careless,

hostile, or confused.

 Although cited as a feature of psychological abnormality, research

suggests that being dangerous is the exception rather than the rule.

Four Factors

 These 4 factors

– deviance, distress, dysfunction, and danger are all taken into account to

determine whether behavior is abnormal.

What Is Treatment?

 Once clinicians decide that a person is suffering from abnormality, they

seek to treat it.

 Treatment, or therapy, is a procedure designed to change abnormal

behavior into more normal behavior.

What Is Treatment?

According to Jerome Frank, all forms of therapy have three essential features

How Was Abnormality Viewed and

Treated in the Past?

 In any given year as many as 30% of adults and 19% of children and adolescents in the U.S. display serious psychological disturbances and are in need of clinical treatment

 In addition, most people have difficulty coping at various times

 Is this the fault of modern society?

 Although modern pressures may contribute, they are hardly the primary cause; every society, past and present, has witnessed psychological abnormality

How Was Abnormality Viewed and Treated

in the Past?

Many present-day ideas and treatments have roots in the

past.

Expelling evil spirits

The two holes in this skull recovered from ancient times

indicate that the person underwent trephination,

possibly for the purpose of releasing evil spirits and

curing mental dysfunctioning.

Ancient Views and Treatments

 Ancient societies probably regarded abnormal behavior as the

work of evil spirits.

 This view may have begun as far back as the Stone Age.

 The treatment for severe abnormality was to force the demons

from the body through trephination and exorcism(Symbolic acts that are performed to drive out the devil from persons believed to be

possessed. It was usually performed by the gentle laying of hands).

Greek and Roman Views and Treatments

500 B.C. to 500 A.D.

Philosophers and physicians offered different explanations and treatments for abnormal behaviors

Hippocrates believed and taught that illnesses had natural causes

• Looked to an unbalance of the four fluids, or humors

• Suggested treatments attempted to “rebalance”

Humors:

Bodily chemicals that

influence mental and

physical functioning

Europe in the Middle Ages: Demonology

Returns

500 – 1350 A.D.

The church rejected scientific forms of investigation, and it controlled all education

• Religious beliefs dominant

• Abnormality was seen as a conflict between good and evil

• Some of the earlier demonological treatments reemerged

At the close of the Middle Ages, demonology and its methods began to lose favor again

Asylum

A type of institution that

first became popular in

the sixteenth century to

provide care for persons

with mental disorders.

The Renaissance and the Rise of Asylums

1400 – 1700 A.D.

Demonological views of abnormality continued to decline

German physician Johann Weyer believed that the mind was as susceptible to sickness as the body

The care of people with mental disorders continued to improve in this atmosphere

The Renaissance and the Rise of Asylums

 Across Europe, religious shrines were devoted to the humane and loving

treatment of people with mental disorders

 This time also saw a rise of asylums – institutions whose primary purpose

was care of the mentally ill

 Good care was the intention, but became virtual prisons due to

overcrowding

The Nineteenth Century: Reform and

Moral Treatment

 As 1800 approached, the treatment of people with mental disorders began

to improve once again

 Pinel (France) and Tuke (England) advocated moral treatment – care that

emphasized moral guidance and humane and respectful techniques

The Nineteenth Century: Reform and

Moral Treatment

 By the end of the nineteenth century, several factors led to a reversal of the

moral treatment movement:

Money and staff shortages

Declining recovery rates

Overcrowding

Emergence of prejudice

 By the early years of the twentieth century, the moral treatment movement

had ground to a halt; long-term hospitalization became the rule once again.

The Early Twentieth Century: Dual

Perspectives

 As the moral movement was declining in the late 1800s, two opposing

perspectives emerged:

The Early Twentieth Century: The

Somatogenic Perspective

 Two factors were responsible for the rebirth of this perspective:

Emil Kraepelin argued that physical factors (such as fatigue) are

responsible for mental dysfunction.

New biological discoveries were made, such as the link between untreated

syphilis and general paresis.

 Despite the general optimism, biological approaches yielded mostly

disappointing results throughout the first half of the twentieth century, until a

number of effective medications were finally discovered.

The Early Twentieth Century: The

Psychogenic Perspective

 The rise in popularity of this perspective was based on work with hypnotism:

Friedrich Mesmer and hysterical disorders

Sigmund Freud’s theory of psychoanalysis

 Freud and his followers offered treatment primarily to patients who did not

require hospitalization – now known as outpatient therapy

By the early 20th century, psychoanalytic theory and treatment were

widely accepted

Current Trends

 It would hardly be accurate to say that we now live in an period of great

enlightenment about or dependable treatment of mental disorders

43% of people surveyed believe that people bring mental health disorders upon themselves and 35% consider mental health disorders to be caused by sinful behavior

STILL…

The past 50 years have brought major changes in the ways clinicians understand and treat abnormal functioning

How Are People with Severe Disturbances

Cared For?

 In the 1950s, researchers discovered a number of new psychotropic

medications:

Antipsychotic drugs

Antidepressant drugs

Antianxiety drugs

 These discoveries led to deinstitutionalization and a rise in outpatient care

The Impact of Deinstitutionalization

How Are People with Severe Disturbances

Cared For?

 Outpatient care has now become the primary mode of treatment

 When patients do need institutionalization, it is usually short-term

hospitalization, and then, ideally, outpatient psychotherapy and medication

in community settings

 The approach has been helpful for many patients, but too few community

programs are available in the U.S.; only 40 to 60% of those with severe

disturbances receive treatment of any kind

How Are People with Less Severe

Disturbances Treated?

 Since the 1950s, outpatient care has

continued to be the preferred mode of

treatment for those with moderate

disturbances

Although this type of care was once

exclusively private psychotherapy,

most health insurance plans now

cover various settings, as well as

specialty care

How Are People with Less Severe

Disturbances Treated?

A Growing Emphasis on Preventing Disorders

and Promoting Mental Health

 The community mental health approach has given rise to the prevention

movement

Many of today's programs aim to:

Correct the social conditions that underlie psychological problems

Help individuals at risk for developing disorders

Prevention programs have been further energized by the growing interest

in positive psychology – the study and enhancement of positive feelings,

traits, and abilities

Multicultural Psychology

 In response to growing diversity in the U.S., this new area of study has

emerged

Multicultural psychologists seek to understand how culture, race,

ethnicity, gender, and similar factors affect behavior and thought and

how people of different cultures, races, and genders may differ

psychologically

The Growing Influence of Insurance

Coverage

Today the dominant form of insurance coverage is the managed care program – in which the insurance

company determines key care issues

At least 75% of all privately insured

persons in the U.S. are enrolled in managed

care programs

A key problem is that reimbursements for

mental disorders tend to be lower than those for medical disorders

What Are Today's Leading Theories and

Professions?

 One of the most important

developments in the field

of abnormal psychology

has been the growth of

theoretical perspectives,

including: