PSYCH 14 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: National Comorbidity Survey, East Los Angeles College, Thomas Szasz
Document Summary
Behavior that conforms to the norm, or the behavior of the majority, is considered to be a sign of mental health. Behavior that deviates from the norm is considered abnormal. Construct objective criteria of good or ideal mental health. Deviations from the ideal state are interpreted as indications of underlying pathology. Legal definitions of sanity are based on the ability to distinguish right from wrong and to understand the consequences of the charges for the crime in question. Thomas szasz: the myth of mental illness. Mental illness is a convenient label we use to hide social distress . The condition results from the inability of some internal mechanism (mental or. The condition causes some harm to the person as judged by the standards of the physical) to perform its natural function and person"s culture (subjective distress or difficulty performing expected social or occupational roles) a specified time.
