PSY 395 Quiz: Exam 1 Study Guide
Exam 1 Study Guide
Abnormality:
➢ There is no consensus definition
➢ There are some clear indicators of abnormality
Subjective distress: emotion or internal experience that is distressing to the individual, but
cannot be directly observed by others (neither necessary nor sufficient for a disorder)
Maladaptiveness/impairment: interferes with our well-being and our ability to enjoy our work
and relationships
Statistical deviancy: statistically rare, very uncommon behavior or mental/emotional states
Violation of the standards of society: when people fail to follow the conventional social and
moral rules of their cultural group
Social discomfort in others: when someone violates an implicit or unwritten social rule
Irrationality and unpredictability: behavior or states of mind that are so out of the expected
and ordinary that it impairs one's participation in the culture
Dangerousness to self or others: someone who is a danger to themselves or others
Classification systems:
➢ provide nomenclature and common language
➢ allow information structuring and organization
➢ facilitate research
➢ defines which difficulties warrant insurance reimbursement
Disadvantages of classification:
➢ loss of individual's information
➢ stigma and stereotypes
➢ self-concept impacted
DSM-5: the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental
Disorders, Fifth Edition; a widely used system for classifying psychological disorders.
ICD-10: another psychiatric classification system, has similarities and differences with DSM-5,
used in US and other countries
DSM-5 definition of mental disorder: biological, psychological, or developmental dysfunction
in individual, clinically significant disturbance in behavior, emotion regulation, or cognitive
function, associated with distress or impairment
Taijin Kyofusho: a form of social anxiety common in Japan involving a fear of offending or
embarrassing others with one's odor, eye contact, or appearance.
Ataque de nervios: a self-labeled syndrome found in Latinos in which they experience a mixture
of anxiety, panic, depression, and anger
Epidemiology: study of distribution of diseases, disorders, or health related behaviors in a given
population
➢ important field for planning, establishing, and funding mental health services for specific
disorders and providing clues to causes of mental disorders
Prevalence: number of active cases in population during any given period of time, expressed as
percentages, different types
Incidence: number of new cases in population over given period of time, incidence figures are
typically lower than prevalence figures
LIFETIME PREVALENCE FOR MENTAL DISORDERS: 46.4%
Treatment: not all people receive treatment, vast majority of treatment is done on outpatient
basis, inpatient hospitalization typically in psychiatric units
Benefits of research:
➢ learn about a disorder's symptoms, prevalence, duration (acute, chronic), and
accompanying problems,
➢ understand etiology and nature of disorder,
➢ discover how to provide the best treatment
Point prevalence: the number of cases of a specific condition or disorder that can be found in a
population at one given point in time
1-year prevalence: the total number of cases of a health-related state or condition in a
population for a given year
Lifetime prevalence: the proportion of living persons in a population who have ever had a
disorder up to the time of the epidemiologic assessment
Etiology: causal pattern of abnormal behavior
o Necessary cause (X)
o Sufficient cause (Y)
o Contributory cause
Direct observation: method of collecting research data that involves directly observing behavior
in a given situation
Comparison/control group: group of subjects who do not exhibit the disorder being studied but
who are comparable in all other respects to the criterion group- do not receive a condition or
treatment
Criterion group: group of subjects who exhibit the disorder under study
Case Studies: specific individual observed and described in detail
➢ subject to bias of author of case study
➢ conclusion have low generalizability
Self-Report Data: participants asked to provide information about themselves
➢ interviews and questionnaires
➢ potential bias
Observational Approaches:
➢ Collecting information without asking participants directly for it
➢ Outward behavior can be observed directly
➢ Biological variables can be observed via technologically advanced methods
NIMH Research Domain Criteria
➢ Negative Valence Systems (e.g. fear, anxiety, loss)
➢ Positive Valence systems (e.g. reward, learning, habit)
➢ Cognitive Systems (e.g. attention, perception, memory)
➢ Systems for Social Processes (e.g. attachment, communication, perception of self and
others)
➢ Arousal and Regulatory Systems (e.g. arousal, circadian rythms)
o Units of analysis: genes, molecules, cells, circuits, physiology, behavior, self-
reports, paradigms, genes, molecules
Hypotheses:
o An effort to explain, predict, or epxplore something
o Often sparked by anecdotal accounts and unusual research findings
o Must be tested in well-designed research studies
o Frequently determine therapeutic approaches used to treat a particular clinical problem
Sampling and Generalization
Document Summary
There are some clear indicators of abnormality. Subjective distress: emotion or internal experience that is distressing to the individual, but cannot be directly observed by others (neither necessary nor sufficient for a disorder) Maladaptiveness/impairment: interferes with our well-being and our ability to enjoy our work and relationships. Statistical deviancy: statistically rare, very uncommon behavior or mental/emotional states. Violation of the standards of society: when people fail to follow the conventional social and moral rules of their cultural group. Social discomfort in others: when someone violates an implicit or unwritten social rule. Irrationality and unpredictability: behavior or states of mind that are so out of the expected and ordinary that it impairs one"s participation in the culture. Dangerousness to self or others: someone who is a danger to themselves or others. Dsm-5: the american psychiatric association"s diagnostic and statistical manual of mental. Disorders, fifth edition; a widely used system for classifying psychological disorders.
