HPS121 Lecture Notes - Lecture 8: Paranoid Schizophrenia, Learned Helplessness, Dsm-5
HPS121 Week 8
Psychological disorders
Mood disorders: depression and mania –
Mood disorders – a set of disorders which include depression and mania (excessive excitement).
Together with anxiety disorders, mood disorders are the most frequently experienced psychological
disorders. There is high comorbidity (co-occurrence) involving anxiety and mood disorders.
Major depression – an intense depressed state that leaves the person unable to function effectively in
their lives.
Dysthymia – a less intense form of depression that has less dramatic effects on personal and
occupational functioning. Although it’s less intense, it’s more chronic and longer-lasting form of
misery.
The ‘negative mood state’ is the core feature of depression. Depression also consists of cognitive
(negative cognitions about self, world and future), somatic (loss of appetite, lack of energy, sleep
difficulties, weight loss/gain) and motivational (loss of interest, lack of drive, difficulty starting
anything) symptoms.
Bipolar disorder – depression (which is usually the dominant state) alternates with periods of mania
(a state of highly excited mood and behaviour that’s quite the opposite of depression).
Causes of mood disorders – mood disorders are a product of interacting biological, psychological,
environmental and social factors.
Biological factors – inherited genes in developing a depressive disorder can only show up given
certain kinds of environmental factors such as significant losses and low social support.
× Two genetically based temperament systems called the behavioural inhibition system (BIS) and the
behavioural activation system (BAS) are heavily involved in the development of mood disorders.
× One influential theory holds that depression is a disorder of motivation caused by underactivity in a
family of neurotransmitters that include norepinephrine, dopamine and serotonin. When neural
transmission decreases in the BAS regions of the brain, it results in a lack of pleasure and loss of
motivation that characterise depression.
× Bipolar disorder has a stronger genetic basis than unipolar depression. About 50% of patients
diagnosed with bipolar have a parent, grandparent or child with the disorder.
Psychological factors –
Personality-based vulnerability – Psychoanalysts Karl Abraham and Sigmund Freud believed that
early traumatic losses or rejections create vulnerability for later depression by triggering a grieving
and rage process that becomes part of the person’s personality. Subsequent losses and rejection
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reactivate the original loss and cause a reaction not only to the current event but also to the unresolved
loss from the past.
Cognitive processes – according to Beck, depressed people victimise themselves through their own
beliefs that they are defective, worthless and inadequate. They also believe that whatever happens to
them is bad and that negative things will continue to happen to them because of their personal defects.
This is called ‘depressive cognitive triad,’ which involves negative thoughts concerning the world,
oneself and the future. Depressed people also exhibit a ‘depressive attributional pattern,’ attributing
successes or positive events to factors outside the self while attributing negative events to themselves.
Another cognitive factor of depression is ‘learned helplessness theory,’ which holds that depression
occurs when people expect that bad events will occur and that there is nothing they can do to prevent
them or cope with them.
Learning and environmental factors – according to the behavioural perspective, depression is
usually triggered by a loss, by some other punishing event or by a drastic decrease in the amount of
positive reinforcement that the person receives from their environment. Behavioural theorists believe
that in order to start curing depression, the patient must set positive goals and force themselves to
engage in behaviours that are likely to produce some degree of pleasure. Environmental may also help
explain why depression tends to run in families. Children of depressed parents often experience poor
parenting and stressful events as they grow up, which may result in them failing to develop good
coping skills and positive self-concept, making them more vulnerable to stressful events which can
trigger depression.
Sociocultural factors – prevalence in depressive disorders is far lower in eastern countries than the
western countries as people in these societies tend to have strong social support from family and
other groups, which help to reduce the negative impact of loss and disappointments. Cultural
factors can also affects ways in which depression is manifested. Finally, cultural factors may
influence who develops depression. E.g. in Australia women are more likely to develop
depression than men.
Schizophrenia – severe disturbances in thinking, speech, perception, emotion and behaviour.
Schizophrenia is one of a family of psychotic disorders, all of which involve loss of contact with
reality, as well as bizarre behaviours and experiences.
Recent studies show that children who later develop schizophrenia show less normal social
behaviours compared to their peers.
Characteristics of schizophrenia – a diagnoses of schizophrenia requires evidence that a person
misinterprets reality and exhibits disordered attention, thought or perception. The patient typically
withdraws from social interactions, communicates in a strange or inappropriate manner, neglects
personal grooming and behaves in a disorganised fashion. Schizophrenic thought sometimes entails
delusions and hallucinations.
Delusions – false beliefs that are sustained in the face of evidence that normally would be
sufficient to destroy them. E.g. believing that Jesus is his personal agent.
Hallucinations – false perceptions that have a compelling sense of reality. E.g. hearing
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Document Summary
Mood disorders a set of disorders which include depression and mania (excessive excitement). Together with anxiety disorders, mood disorders are the most frequently experienced psychological disorders. There is high comorbidity (co-occurrence) involving anxiety and mood disorders. Major depression an intense depressed state that leaves the person unable to function effectively in their lives. Dysthymia a less intense form of depression that has less dramatic effects on personal and occupational functioning. Although it"s less intense, it"s more chronic and longer-lasting form of misery. The negative mood state" is the core feature of depression. Depression also consists of cognitive (negative cognitions about self, world and future), somatic (loss of appetite, lack of energy, sleep difficulties, weight loss/gain) and motivational (loss of interest, lack of drive, difficulty starting anything) symptoms. Bipolar disorder depression (which is usually the dominant state) alternates with periods of mania (a state of highly excited mood and behaviour that"s quite the opposite of depression).
