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If psychological disorders are linked to increased expressions of creativity, why would this be the case?
- The effects of mania and hypomania on cognition
- Divergent (contradictory) thinking, quick thinking, and positive mood.
Emily Pronin
- American Social Psychologist
- Has explored the relationship between thought speed and cognition.
Study:
Treatment of Psychological Disorders
- For people suffering from psychological disorders, there are many different treatment options (mostly for depression and anxiety):
The humanistic approach to therapy
- Carl Rogers (founder)
- The humanistic approach emphasizes:
- Human nature is oriented toward growth, not defense.
Client-centered therapy
- Important techniques:
- The goal of the client-centered therapy is to create the right conditions for physical growth. To be accepted for who they are.
Generalized Anxiety Disorder
- An anxiety disorder in which a person is continually tense, apprehensive, and in a state of autonomic nervous system arousal. Excessive worry and anxiety without a specific cause. Elevated blood pressure, increased heart rate, muscle tension, sweating, and shaking.
Panic Disorder
- An anxiety disorder marked by unpredictable, minutes-long episodes of intense dread in which a person experiences terror and accompanying chest pain, choking, or other frightening sensations.
Phobias
- An anxiety disorder marked by a persistent, irrational fear and avoidance of a specific object, activity, or situation. Sense of endangerment or a fear of harm.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
- An anxiety disorder characterized by haunting memories, nighmares, social withrdawal, jumpy anxiety, and/or insomnia that lingers for four weeks or more after a traumatic experience.
Personality Disorders
- Psychological disorders characterized by inflexible and enduring behavior patterns that impair social functioning.
- Cluster A: Odd or Eccentric Disorders
- Cluster B: Dramatic, Emotional, or Erratic Disorders
Cluster C: Anxious or Fearful Disorders
Antisocial Personality Disorder
- A personality disorder in which a person (usually male) exhibits a lack of conscience for wrongdoing, even towards friends and family members. Aggressive and ruthless or a clever con artist. Difficulty feeling empathy for others. Begin the symptoms during childhood (ex: cruelty to animals).
Psychotherapy
- Treatment involving psychological techniques; consists of interactions between a trained therapist and someone seeking to overcome psychological difficulties or achieve personal growth.
Psychopharmacology
- The study of the effects of drugs on mind and behavior.
Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT)
- A biomedical therapy for severely depressed patients in which a brief electric current is sent through the brain of an anesthetized patient. Most patients are women. Controversial.
What is hoarding?
The excessive collection of items, with the inability to discard them.
Hoarding is considered a psychological disorder in the DSM-5 as "hoarding disorder".
What overarching criteria is used to determine if an individual has a psychological disorder?
- Deviance, Distress, Dysfunction, Danger
- Deviance: different from most people. Standards for deviant behavior vary by context, culture( ex: poligamy), and even over time.
- Distress: The deviant behavior leads the person to experience distress (an uncomfortable feeling, or specifically feelings of anxiety and/or depression)
- Dysfunction: The deviant and distressful behavior leads to problems at work and one's ability to enjoy leisure time.
- Danger: is the deviant, distressful, and dysfunctional behavior harmful to other peopl or the individual.
What is the DSM?
- Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of mental disorders (DSM) is the current authoritative scheme for classifying psychological disorders. It categorizes particular disorers by symptoms, prevalence, course of disorder, insurance purposes (for economic reasons)
- This is the bible of psychologists
What is a clinical interview?
A face-to-face encounter between patient and clinician. The purpose is to collect information about the person to put a label on them.
- Unstructured (go with the flow, why are you here?) vs. Structured (strict set of questions they ask)
Is there evidence to suggest that psychologists/psychiatrists agree about a particular diagnosis?
- Yes: as indicated by Riskind. Generalized anxiety disorder and major depressive disorder.
- No: as indicated by Black. Not much agreement about some psychological disorders. For example: distinguishing one anxiety disorder from another.
Who was Thomas Szasz and what did he say?
- Thomas Szasz: Academic Psychiatrist
The Rosenhan Experiment
David Rosenhan: American Psychologist
The Rosenhan Experiment:
- Most psychologists believe that psychological disorders are real and that the labels are helpful (people with schizophrenia have smaller brains).
-Most clinical psychologists and psychiatrists adhere to the medical model conception of mental disorders (psychological disorders are diseases that have physical causes that can be diagnosed, treated, and in many cases cured).
- Medical Students Disease: A phenomenon where students think they have the diseases they are studying.
What are Mood Disorders?
Psychological disorders characterized by emotional extremes:
Biological Approach to Major Depressive Disorder
Neurotransmitters and depression
Study: Acute Tryptophan Depletion
- Genes: Under 40% of heritability- major depressive disorder. So much of it is the environment (death, bullying, weather)
Learning/Cognitive Approach to Major Depressive Disorder
- Learned Helplesness: the hopelessness and passive resignation an animal or human learns when unable to avoid repeated aversive events.
Martin Seligman and his study.
Martin Seligman (American Psychologist)
Study:
- The dogs gave up more times with the inescapable shock than with no treatment.
Social Approach to Major Depressive Disorders
Fromm
- Wrote a book called "The Same Society"
-Capitalism is the root of all evil: money can lead to problems.
Sheldon Solomon
- Co-creator of the Terror Management Theory
-Says our value system is too high (being thin, rich)
- We're not only harmin ourselves, but also destroying the environment, because we are creating a lot of materials. For example, in China their factories cause rivers to be dead and also if we need new homes we cut down the trees.