CLPS 1700 Abnormal Psych Background

Somatogenic Perspective

abnormal psychological functioning has physical causes

Psychogenic Perspectivce

causes of abnormal functioning are psychological

nomothetic

conerned with establishing laws or generalizations (long term population study)

case study

detailed description of a person's life and psychological problems

patterns of psychological abnormality are...

deviant, distress, dysfunctional, dangerous

deviant

difficult, extra, unusual, perhaps bizarre

research validity

how well a test of piece of research actually measures what it sets out to

epidemiological studies

measures incidence and prevalence of a problem in a given population

dysfunctional

person can't conduct daily activities in a constructive way

research reliability

test can be repeated many times with the same result

distress

unpleasant and upsetting to the person

matched design

use participants with control ones that are of similar characteristics