Psychology 101-Chapter 15

1. Suicide is the _____ leading cause of death in the United States among high school and college students

2nd

4. The incidence of which of the following has the highest male to female ratio?

Autism spectrum disorder

2. Which person is LEAST likely to commit suicide?

Black Female

What the DSM-5 is and what function(s) it serves

Classification system that describes the features used to diagnose each recognized mental disorder and indicates how the disorder can be distinguished form other, similar problems

Diathesis-stress model; the three-P's categorization of factors that contribute to the development and maintenance of disorders [slides]

Diathesis-Stress Model- person may be predisposed for a psychological disorder that remains unexpressed until triggered by stress Look at picture from notes

The three D's -- the criteria psychologists use to judge whether a behavior is abnormal [slides, not the 3 D's on p. 586]

Distress-cause someone or a person around you distress, Dysfunction- if it affects your ability to function, Deviance- how you deviate from norm

RDoC vs DSM

Focus on basic underlying processes; Study causes of abnormal functioning on: • Biological factors - genes, cells, brain circuits • Psychological factors - learning, attention, memory • Social processes and behavior RDoC would shift research away from studying currently defined DSM categories, and toward the study of the dimensional biopsychosocial processed believed, at the extreme end of the continuum, to lead to mental disorders. Long-term goal is to better understand what abnormalities cause different disorders, and to classify disorders based on those underlying causes, rather than observed symptoms

The medical model, the biopsychosocial perspective, how psychological disorders are assessed (including the Real World sidebar on p. 592), how the RDoC approach differs from the DSM approach

Medical Model: abnormal psychological experiences are conceptualized as illnesses that, like physical illnesses, have biological and environmental causes, defined symptoms and possible cures Biopsychosocial Perspective: mental disorders as the result of interactions among biological, psychological and social factors Real World Sidebar: Leaders in the field are the ones who make decisions about which disorders should be included in the new revision of the DSM • Field moving from simple descriptive diagnostic categories toward ones based on underlying biopsychosocial processes • Researchers have developed structured clinical interviews that convert the lists of symptoms included in the DSM into sets of interview questions through which clinicians make determinations about whether or not a person meets criteria for each disorder

Be able to recognize the general symptoms of the types of anxiety disorders, OCD, PTSD, major depressive disorder, and bipolar disorder.

OCD: • Obsessions - irrational, disturbing thoughts that intrude into consciousness • Compulsions - repetitive actions performed to alleviate obsessions • Partly genetic, partly conditioning • Heightened neural activity in caudate nucleus • More common in women PTSD: • Follows traumatic event or events such as war, rape, or assault [precipitated by trauma] • Symptoms include: o nightmares o flashbacks o sleeplessness o easily startled o depression o irritability Major Depressive Disorder: • Major depressive disorder • Persistent depressive disorder (dysthymia) Bipolar Disorder: • cycling between depression and mania (extreme euphoria)

Be able to recognize the predisposing and precipitating biological (genetic, brain structure, hormonal, etc.), psychological, and cognitive-behavioral factors contributing to or related to the development of these disorders.

Predisposing factors are the diatheses in the diathesis-stress model -- risk factors for a disorder (e.g., genotype, early trauma). Precipitating factors are the events that trigger a disorder's onset (the 'stress'). The predisposing and precipitating factors differ for each disorder, and can be found throughout Chapter 15 and in the Disorders Part 2 slides. For the mood disorders and schizophrenia, the book even has separate sections for biological factors and psychological factors.

Which disorders seem to have the highest heritability? The lowest?

The answer to this involves comparing heritability estimates across the various disorders as described in textbook and slides. For some, heritability is unclear, but bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and ASD seem to have the highest estimates, and PTSD the lowest (since by definition it is caused by environmental events).

Role of gender and culture in incidence or diagnosis of disorders, e.g., why more internalizing disorders diagnosed in females, especially depression?

Women have a higher rate of eating disorders Men have a higher rate of conduct disorder It might seem like its higher for a certain disorder because it may be socially unacceptable to admit it.

5. A pervasive pattern of disregard and violation of the rights of others is the definition of _____ personality disorder.

antisocial

3. Over the last eight months, at school and at home, Chris has been running around when he is supposed to be sitting, not paying attention to what he is told to do, getting easily distracted during tasks, and regularly losing focus when he is trying to read. Chris may well be experiencing:

attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

2. Autistic disorder is most associated with impairments in:

communication and social interaction.

5. What is the condition in which a child or adolescent engages in a persistent pattern of deviant behavior involving aggression to people or animals, destruction of property, deceitfulness or theft, or serious rule violations?

conduct disorder

6. Adults with antisocial personality disorder typically have a history of _____ before the age of 15.

conduct disorder

7. Brains of people with antisocial personality disorder often exhibit _____ activity in the _____.

decreased; amygdala

4. Jennifer is overly dramatic and constantly seeks attention by dressing provocatively and exaggerating her emotions. Her classmates view her as shallow and she is beginning to lose friends, although Jennifer believes that everyone loves her. Jennifer's behavior is consistent with which personality disorder?

histrionic

3. Melanie was extremely impressed when she first met Jason. He seemed self-confident and highly successful. After dating him for several weeks, however, Melanie realized that Jason tended to exaggerate his accomplishments and was totally absorbed with himself. Jason's behavior is consistent with which personality disorder?

narcissistic

1. Which of these is NOT recognized by the DSM-5 as being an early-onset disorder?

schizophrenia

Be familiar with the symptoms of schizophrenia (positive and negative), and its predisposing and precipitating factors. Difference between hallucinations & delusions.

• Profound disruption of basic psych processes, distorted perception of reality • Prevalence about 1% • Impairments in ability to: o Work o Care for self o Connect socially with others • Having two (or more) of following present > 1 month o Delusions* o Hallucinations* o Disorganized speech* o Disorganized/catatonic behavior o Negative symptoms o Diminished affect o Impoverished speech o Lack of motivation o Social avoidance

Understand/recognize brain abnormalities often found in those with schizophrenia

• ~60% heritability -- rates increase greatly with biological relatedness. • Prenatal and perinatal factors (virus?, brain damage) • Dopamine hypothesis: an excess of dopamine activity? o Not likely; effects and treatments related to neurotransmitters have yet to be completely determined. • Enlarged ventricles and progressive tissue loss in many cases of schizophrenia. • Disturbed family environment may affect development and recovery of schizophrenia.