PSY360: Abnormal Psychology

Models of

Abnormality/Psychopathology

Dr. Sumaira Khurshid Tahira

Associate Prof

NNU,China

Models of Abnormality • Model: A set of assumptions and concepts that help scientists explain

and interpret observations. Also called a paradigm.

Models of Abnormality

• Paradigms the perspectives used to explain phenomena (abnormal

behavior for this class)

• Biological model

• Psychodynamic model

• Behavioral model

• Cognitive model

• Humanistic-Existential model

• Sociocultural model

The Biological Model

Takes a medical perspective

Main focus is that psychological abnormality is an illness

brought about by malfunctioning parts of the organism

Typically focused on the brain anatomy or brain chemistry

How Do Biological Theorists Explain

Abnormal Behavior? Brain anatomy

 The brain is composed of ~100 billion nerve cells (called neurons) and thousands of billions of support cells (called glia).

 Within the brain, large groups of neurons form distinct areas called brain regions

Brain anatomy and abnormal behavior

 Clinical researchers have discovered connections between certain psychological disorders and problems in specific brain areas

Example: Huntington's disease and basal ganglia (forebrain)

(is a progressive brain disorder that causes uncontrolled movements, emotional problems, and loss of thinking ability).

How Do Biological Theorists Explain

Abnormal Behavior?

Brain chemistry

Neurons do not actually touch each other; they are separated by

a space (the synapse), across which a message moves

When an electrical impulse reaches a nerve ending, the ending

is stimulated to release a chemical, called a neurotransmitter

(NT), that travels across the synaptic space to receptors on the

dendrites of neighboring neurons

How Do Biological Theorists Explain

Abnormal Behavior? Brain chemistry and abnormal behavior

 Researchers have identified dozens of (Neuro transmitters)

Examples

 serotonin, dopamine, and GABA

 Studies indicate that abnormal activity in certain NTs can lead to specific mental disorders

Examples

 depression (low activity of serotonin and norepinephrine) and anxiety (GABA)

How Do Biological Theorists Explain

Abnormal Behavior?

Brain chemistry and abnormal behavior

Additionally, researchers have learned that mental disorders are sometimes related to abnormal chemical activity in the endocrine system

Hormone release, triggered by a variety of factors, propels body organs into action.

Abnormal secretions have been linked to psychological disorders

Example

Cortisol release is related to anxiety and mood disorders

How Do Biological Theorists Explain

Abnormal Behavior?

Sources of biological abnormalities Genetics

Humans have 23 pairs of chromosomes, each with numerous

genes that control the characteristics and traits a person

inherits

Studies suggest that inheritance plays a part in mood

disorders, schizophrenia, mental retardation, Alzheimer's

disease, and other mental disorders

How Do Biological Theorists Explain

Abnormal Behavior?

Another possible source of abnormal brain structure or

biochemical dysfunction is viral infections

Example: Schizophrenia and prenatal viral exposure

Interest in viral explanations of psychological disorders has been

growing in the past decade

Example: Anxiety and mood disorders

Biological Treatments

Biological practitioners attempt to pinpoint the physical

source of dysfunction to determine the course of treatment

Three types of biological treatment

Drug therapy

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)

Psychosurgery

Biological Treatments

Drug therapy:

 1950s = advent of psychotropic medications

 Greatly changed the outlook for a number of mental disorders

 Four major drug groups:

 Antianxiety drugs (anxiolytics; minor tranquilizers)

 Antidepressant drugs

 Antibipolar drugs (mood stabilizers)

 Antipsychotic drugs

Biological Treatments

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)

Used primarily for depression, particularly when drugs and

other therapies have failed

This treatment is used on tens of thousands of depressed

persons annually

Biological Treatments

Psychosurgery (or neurosurgery):

Historical roots in trephination

1930s = first lobotomy

Much more precise today than in the past

Considered experimental and used only in extreme cases

Assessing the Biological Model

Weaknesses

• Can limit rather than enhance our understanding

• Too simplistic

• Evidence is incomplete or inconclusive

• Treatments produce significant undesirable (negative) effects

Strengths

• Enjoys considerable respect in the field

• Fruitful

• Creates new therapies

• Suggests new avenues of research

The Psychodynamic Model

• Oldest and most famous psychological model

• Based on belief that a persons behavior (whether normal or

abnormal) is determined largely by underlying dynamic

psychological forces of which she or he is not aware

• Abnormal symptoms are the result of conflict among these

forces

• Sigmund Freud (1856 1939) Father of psychodynamic

theory and psychoanalytic therapy

How Did Freud Explain Normal and

Abnormal Functioning?

• Freud says abnormal behavior is caused by three Unconscious forces

• Id guided by the Pleasure Principle

• Instinctual needs, drives, impulses

• Sexual; fueled by libido (sexual energy)

• Ego guided by the Reality Principle

• Seeks gratification but guides us to know when we can cant express our wishes

• Superego – guided by the Morality Principle

• Ego defense mechanisms protect us from anxiety

How Did Freud Explain Normal and

Abnormal Functioning?

Developmental stages

• Freud proposed that at each stage of development, new events and pressures require adjustment in the id, ego, and superego

• If successful ? personal growth

• If unsuccessful ? fixation at an early developmental stage, leading to psychological abnormality

• Because parents are the key figures in early life, they are often seen as the cause of improper development

How Did Freud Explain Normal and

Abnormal Functioning?

Developmental stages

Oral (0 to 18 months of age)

Anal (18 months to 3 years of age)

Phallic (3 to 5 years of age)

Latency (5 to 12 years of age)

Genital (12 years of age to adulthood)

How Do Other Psychodynamic

Explanations Differ from Freuds?

Although current models deviate from Freuds in important ways,

each retains the belief that human functioning is shaped by

dynamic (interacting) forces

Ego theorists

Emphasize the role of the ego consider it independent

Self theorists

Emphasize the unified personality over any one component

Object-relations theorists

Emphasize the human need for interpersonal relationships

Psychodynamic Therapies

Range from Freudian psychoanalysis to more modern

therapies

All seek to uncover past trauma and inner conflicts

Understanding early life experience critically important

Therapist acts as subtle guide

Psychodynamic Therapies

Utilize various techniques

Free association

Therapist interpretation

Resistance

Transference

Dream interpretation

Catharsis

Working through

Assessing the Psychodynamic Model

Strengths

First to recognize importance of psychological theories treatment

Saw internal conflict as important source of psychological health

and abnormality

First to apply theory and techniques systematically to treatment

monumental impact on the field

Weaknesses

Unsupported ideas difficult to research

Non-observable

Inaccessible to human subject (unconscious)

The Behavioral Model

Like the psychodynamic perspective, behaviorism is

deterministic, and is based on the idea that our actions are

determined largely by our life experiences

Emphasizes observable behavior and environmental factors

Focuses on how behavior is acquired (learned) and

maintained over time

The Behavioral Model

Historical beginnings in laboratories where conditioning

studies were conducted

Three forms of conditioning (learning)

Operant conditioning

Modeling

Classical conditioning

May produce normal or abnormal behavior

How Do Behaviorists Explain Abnormal

Functioning?

Operant conditioning

Organism operates on environment and produces an effect

Humans and animals learn to behave in certain ways as a

result of receiving rewards whenever they do so

How Do Behaviorists Explain Abnormal

Functioning?

Modeling

Individuals learn behavioral responses by observing and

repeating behavior

No direct reinforcement

How Do Behaviorists Explain Abnormal

Functioning? Classical conditioning

Learning by temporal association

When two events repeatedly occur close together in time,

they become fused in a persons mind before long, the person

responds in the same way to both events

Father of classical conditioning Ivan Pavlov (1849 1936)

Classic study using dogs meat powder

Classical Conditioning

UR Salivate

US Meat

UR Salivate

Tone

US Meat

CS Tone

CR Salivate

How Do Behaviorists Explain Abnormal

Functioning?

• Classical conditioning

• If, after conditioning, the CS is repeatedly presented alone, it

will eventually stop eliciting the CR

• This process is called extinction

• Explains many familiar behaviors (both normal and abnormal)

Behavioral Therapies

Aim is to identify the behaviors that are causing problems

and replace them with more appropriate ones

May use classical conditioning, operant conditioning, or

modeling

Therapist is teacher rather than healer

Behavioral Therapies

Classical conditioning treatments may be used to change

abnormal reactions to particular stimuli

Example: systematic desensitization for phobia

Step-by-step procedure

Learn relaxation skills

Develop a fear hierarchy

Confront feared situations ( in vivo)

Assessing the Behavioral Model

Strengths

• Powerful force in the field

• Rooted in empiricism

• Phenomena can be observed and measured

• Significant research support for behavioral therapies

Weaknesses

• Too simplistic

• Unrealistic

• Downplays role of cognition

• New focus on self-efficacy, social cognition, and cognitive-behavioral theories

The Cognitive Model

Seeks to account for behavior by studying the ways in

which the person attends to, interprets, and uses available

information

Argues that clinicians must ask questions about

assumptions, attitudes, and thoughts of a client

Concerned with internal processes

Present-focused

How Do Cognitive Theorists Explain

Abnormal Functioning?

Maladaptive thinking is the cause of maladaptive behavior

Several kinds of faulty thinking

Faulty assumptions and attitudes

Illogical thinking processes

Example overgeneralization

Cognitive Therapies

People must be taught a new way of thinking to prevent

maladaptive behavior

Main model Becks Cognitive Therapy

The goal of therapy is to help clients recognize and

restructure their thinking

Therapists guide clients to challenge dysfunctional

thoughts, try out new interpretations, and apply new ways

of thinking in their daily lives

Widely used in treating depression

Assessing the Cognitive Model

Strengths

Very broad appeal

Clinically useful ,effective

Focuses on a uniquely human process

Correlation between symptoms and maladaptive cognition

Therapies effective in treating several disorders

Adapt well to technology

Research-based

Assessing the Cognitive Model

Weaknesses

Singular, narrow focus

Overemphasis on the present

Limited effectiveness

Verification of cognition is difficult

Precise role is hard to determine

The Humanistic-Existential Model

Combination model

The humanist view

Emphasis on people as friendly, cooperative, and

constructive focus on drive to self-actualization

The existentialist view

Emphasis on self-determination, choice, and individual

responsibility focus on authenticity

Rogers Humanistic Theory and Therapy

 Basic human need for unconditional positive regard

 If received, leads to unconditional self-regard

 If not, leads to “conditions of worth”

 Incapable of self-actualization because of distortion dont know what they really need, etc.

 Rogers client-centered therapy

 Therapist provides unconditional positive regard

 Both accurate genuine in reflection (reflective listening)

 Focus on the experiencing person

 Little research support

Gestalt Theory and Therapy

Humanistic approach

Developed by Fritz Perls

Goal is to guide clients toward self-recognition through

challenge and frustration

Techniques:

Skillful frustration

Role playing

Rules, including “Here and Now” and “I” language

Little research support

Existential Theories and Therapy

Psychological dysfunction is caused by self-deception people

hide from life's responsibilities and fail to recognize that it is

up to them to give meaning to their lives

Therapy is focused on patient acceptance of personal

responsibility and recognition of freedom of action

Goals more important than technique

Great emphasis placed on client-therapist relationship

Assessing the Humanistic-Existential

Model Strengths

Emphasizes the individual

Taps into domains missing from other theories

Non-deterministic

Optimistic

Emphasizes health

Weaknesses

Focuses on abstract issues

Difficult to research

Not much influence

Weakened by disapproval of scientific approach

Changing somewhat

The Sociocultural Model

Argues that abnormal behavior is best understood in light of the

social and cultural forces that influence an individual

Addresses norms and roles in society

Argues that we must examine a persons social surroundings to

understand their (abnormal) behavior

Influenced by sociology and anthropology

How Do Sociocultural Theorists Explain

Abnormal Functioning?

Focus on

Societal labels roles

Diagnostic labels (example Rosenhan study)

Sick role

Social networks and support

How Do Sociocultural Theorists Explain

Abnormal Functioning?

Focus on

Family structure and communication

Family systems theory abnormal functioning within family

leads to abnormal behavior

Examples enmeshed, disengaged structures

How Do Sociocultural Theorists Explain

Abnormal Functioning?

Focus on

Culture

Set of values, attitudes, beliefs, history, and behaviors

shared by a group of people and communicated from one

generation to the next

Multicultural psychology is a growing field of study

How Do Sociocultural Theorists Explain

Abnormal Functioning?

Focus on

Religion and spirituality

For most of the twentieth century, clinical scientists viewed

religion as a negative factor in mental health but this

alienation now seems to be ending

Researchers have begun to systematically study the influence

of religion and spirituality on mental health

Many therapists now address spiritual issues when treating

religious clients

Sociocultural Treatments

May include traditional individual therapy

Broadened therapy to include

Culturally sensitive therapy

Group therapy

Family therapy

Couple therapy

Community treatment

Assessing the Sociocultural Model

Strengths

Added greatly to the clinical understanding of abnormality

Increased awareness of labeling

Clinically successful when other treatments have failed

Weaknesses

Research is difficult to interpret

Correlation ? Causation

Model unable to predict abnormality in specific individuals

Integration of the Models

Each perspective is valuable to understanding abnormal

behavior

Different perspectives are more appropriate under differing

conditions

An integrative approach provides a general framework for

thinking about abnormal behavior, and also allows for

specification of the factors that are especially pertinent to

particular disorders

Integration of the Models

Many theorists, clinicians, and practitioners adhere to a

biopsychosocial model

Abnormality results from the interaction of genetic, biological,

developmental, emotional, behavioral, cognitive, social, and

societal influences

Diathesis-stress approach

 explanation of how the various factors together cause abnormality

(“diathesis” means a predisposed tendency). According to this

theory, people must first have a biological, psychological, or

sociocultural predisposition to develop a disorder and must then be

subjected to episodes of severe stress.

Integration of the Models

Integrative therapists are often called eclectic taking the

strengths from each model and using them in combination

Thanks