PSYC 3390 Chapter 8: Chapter 8.docx

• School: University of Guelph
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSYC 3390
• Professor: Mary Manson- Hennig

Document Summary

Somatoform disorders: a group of conditions that involve physical symptoms and complaints suggesting the presence of a medical condition but without any evidence of physical pathology to account for them. The people with these symptoms normally focus on one aspect of their health or appearance to the extent that they find it hard to function. Due to this, they frequent physicians very often. Dissociative disorders: a group of conditions involving disruptions in a person s normally integrated functions of consciousness, memory, identity or perception. Dissociation: the human s mind capacity to engage in complex mental activity in channels split off from or independent of conscious awareness. The affected patients have no control over their symptoms and are not intentionally faking symptoms or attempting to deceive others. They generally believe that there is something seriously wrong with their bodies. Somatization is common in all cultural groups and societies that have been studied.