Abnormal psychology is a subdivision of psychology that deals with
psychopathology and “addresses how abnormal behavior is defined, classified,
explained and treated” (Hansell & Damour, 2008 p 22). Psychopathology is best known as mental
disorder, “is considered present when a behavior pattern or emotional state
causes an individual clinically significant distress, dysfunction, or
impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning or
is widely deviant from social or cultural norms” ("Psychopathology,"
2008). Abnormal behavior can be defined
as behavior that “significantly differs from some consensually agreed upon norm
and that is in some way harmful to the differently behavior person or to
others” (Meyers, Chapman, & Weaver, 2009 p. 1). Help seeking,
irrationality/dangerousness, deviance, emotional distress and significant are
five general criterions that are used to help define abnormal behavior. The
field of psychology is very important because it seeks to give understanding into
human behavior in the manner of how and why they behave in certain ways as well
as their thought processes. Abnormal
psychology is important because it helps to analyze human behavior, emotion and
thought which could lead up to a mental disorder.
Defining abnormal behavior is very difficult since there are so
many factors to consider when analyzing an individual’s behavior; therefore
core concepts were developed in order for behavior to assess as to whether or
not it is abnormal. The six core
concepts that help with identifying abnormal behavior are “context, continuum
between normal and abnormal, cultural and historical relativism in defining and
classifying abnormality, the advantages and limitations of diagnosis, the
principle of multiple causality and the connection between mind and body” (Hansell & Damour, 2008 p. 5).
Greek philosopher Hippocrates developed a biological theory of
mental illness that illustrates how abnormal psychology evolved into a
scientific discipline. According to the
text in Abnormal psychology, “Hippocrates believed that all diseases, including
mental disorders, were caused by an imbalance among the four fluids, or
humours, that were thought to circulate in the body” (Hansell & Damour,
2008 p. 28). Hippocrates encouraged
treatment that would restore balance amongst the four fluids through changes in
behavior and diet which set the groundwork for future studies to gain
understanding of abnormal behavior.
Hysteria is important to the history of abnormal psychology evolving
into a scientific discipline because it took part in the development of
psychoanalysis. Hysteria symptoms
consist of paralysis, confusion, loss of sensation, and various physical pains
and ailments which are symptoms that were usually contributed to some form of
neurological damage or disease, however there were no signs of neurological
damage that could explain those symptoms.
Through medical observations Greek physicians were able to develop a
theory based on the female anatomy, which suggested that “the uterus was not
stationary in the abdomen, but actually traveled through the body on search of
pleasant aromas” (Hansell & Damour, 2008 p. 29). The treatment which was said to work for
hysteria was placing a bouquet of sweet smelling flowers on the abdomen. This treatment ironically allowed for future
studies because of the evidence of “physical and psychological effects of
mental states such as belief, confidence, submission to authority, and hope”
(Hansell & Damour, 2008 p. 31).
A number of theoretical models related to the development of
abnormal psychology were developed to put emphasis on the significance of how
beneficial certain relations are during treatment. Although these theoretical models integrate
with one another in some instances, they all address causation from a different
perspective. Psychosocial theoretical
model gives “a perspective in abnormal psychology that integrates biological,
psychological and social components” (Hansell & Damour, 2008 p. 34). Psychosocial dwarfism is an example given
that explains how psychosocial stresses can influence the beginning of a mental
or physical disorder. Psychosocial
dwarfism “is a rare but dramatic disorder in which children who are severely
emotionally deprived literally stop growing despite receiving adequate physical
and nutritional care” (Hansell & Damour, 2008 p. 34). Biological/medical theoretical model
“focuses on physical structures and biochemical functions in the body that
contribute to abnormal behavior” (Hansell & Damour, 2008 p. 34). The biological/medical model primary focus is
on the bio-chemical functioning of the brain and what happens to body
physically, as they relate to the field of psychology. These areas include
neurological damage, hormone imbalance, physical injury and disorders relating
to neurotransmitters. Sociocultural
theoretical model “focus on how social cultural, and family environment
contribute to mental disorders” (Hansell & Damour, 2008 p. 63).
In conclusion, abnormal psychology has been around for a little
more than 100 years emerging as a scientific discipline from the prehistoric
and ancient times. Research and
treatment from the earlier years has paved the way to develop more advanced
research in identifying and treatment of mental illness. In addition to
abnormal psychology emerging as a scientific discipline, theoretical models
were developed to stress the importance of relationships during treatment of
mental illness.
No comments:
Post a Comment