Models of Abnormality
You will already be familiar with the idea of 'models' from your AS Level studies, so you know that different psychologists might approach the same problem in very different ways. Some might look at the social factors behind the behaviour, others cognitive factors and some the biological factors. Before we can even begin to decide on how to treat mental illness in our society, we need to work out what we are actually talking about! As you will see, even this preliminary task is extremely controversial!
Bullet point 1 - Definitions of abnormality
• definitions of abnormality
Definitions: deviation from statistical norms, social norms, ideal mental health, failure to function adequately. Problems with defining and diagnosing abnormality Assignment 1 - what is 'abnormal'?Look at the picture of One Direction on the right. All of them are admitting to some unusual behaviour... but which would you diagnose as 'abnormal'?
For each band member, decide if the behaviour is abnormal or not. Write a brief justification (3-4 lines for each person) of your views. |
Definitions of abnormality
There are 4 different methods of defining abnormality which you need to know. Different definitions may be more effective for different situations. Listen to this podcast, then read the descriptions below...
|
Assignment 3 - Definitions factsheet
|
Tools for diagnosing abnormality
We might know that someone is behaving abnormally, based on the definitions above. But how do we know which condition they might have? How can we diagnose specific mental illnesses? To help them with this, psychiatrists and psychologists use specialised books, or manuals.
DSM - Diagnostic Statistical Manual of mental disordersA manual published by the American Psychiatric Association (APA) which contains a guide to the diagnosis of mental disorders. DSM contains descriptions, symptoms, and other criteria for diagnosing mental disorders. In 2013 the 5th edition was published (the first was in 1952). This is probably the most widely used manual worldwide, although it is not without its controversies. See this link on the DSM website for more.
|
ICD - International Classification of Diseases and Related Health ProblemsNow in it's tenth edition, this is a system used by physicians and other health care providers to classify and code all diagnoses, symptoms and procedures recorded in conjunction with hospital care in the United States. It therefore covers a much larger range of conditions than just mental health disorders. It works in a similar way to the DSM, but the disorders are coded (e.g. A00-Z99). See this link for more.
|
CCMD - Chinese Classification of Mental DisordersPublished by the Chinese Society of Psychiatry (currently in its third edition), this follows the same format as the ICD and DSM for most disorders but also includes about 40 'culturally-related' diagnoses, some of which may not be mentioned in the DSM or ICD. (see below for more on 'culture-bound' disorders)
|
This picture illustrates how the diagnosis of one condition - autism - has changed over time as the successive editions of the DSM have been published. It is a good example of the way that diagnoses of conditions can change over time (see below for more on this), as a result of changes in scientific or cultural ideas.
|
Problems with defining abnormality
|
This video also looks at some of the problems associated with defining and diagnosing abnormality.
|
Problems with diagnosing abnormality
|
Bullet point 2- Models of abnormality
• models of abnormality
Medical/biological, behavioural, psychodynamic, cognitive. Assumptions and applications of models
Medical/biological, behavioural, psychodynamic, cognitive. Assumptions and applications of models
The Biological model of abnormality
Key assumptions of the medical/biological modelThe biological model believes that all psychological disorders have a physical cause (for example genetics, anatomy, biochemistry etc). The model believes that there must be something in the structure or function of the brain which is responsible for causing psychological problems.
One example of this might be the dopamine hypothesis for schizophrenia. This suggests that excess dopamine (a neurotransmitter used parts of the brain) is a factor in creating the symptoms of schizophrenia. Read about the medical model in more detail on the Simply Psychology website here. Now listen to this podcast. |
Applications of the modelThe medical model is the dominant model in the diagnosis and treatment of most (but not all) psychological conditions....
|
GENERAL EVALUATIONS OF BIOLOGICAL EXPLANATIONS· Biological explanations are reductionist as they focus on only biological factors such as chemicals or hormones and ignore psychological factors.
· Biological explanations are deterministic because they ignore the individual’s ability to control their own behaviour. · Biological explanations are not consistent with the success rate for cognitive therapies. Also the success of combination therapies suggests more than one cause. · They can, however, be the easiest explanation for the patient to accept (as it takes the blame away from them and their actions for their condition) |
The points above can be used for ANY essay on the biological model (providing you then relate them to the condition you're discussing)... so LEARN THEM!
The Behavioural model of abnormality
Key assumptions of the behavioural modelYou should remember Behaviourism from your AS work. If you can't remember the key ideas such as operant and classical conditioning, then go back here and re-read the AS introduction page first.
Behaviourists believe that all behaviour (good or bad) is learned through our interaction with the environment. This applies to abnormal behaviour as well, so a psychological condition is simply a learned response to a particular set of environmental stimuli. For example, phobias may arise from classical conditioning, where we come to associate a stimulus (e.g. dogs) with a response (e.g. fear) following a negative incident. Symptoms could then be positively reinforced, for instance with attention and sympathy from friends and family. Social learning theory could play a part too. The flip side of this is the belief that 'anything that has been learned can be unlearned', in other words behaviourists believe that by changing the environmental conditions, we can treat psychological conditions effectively. This clearly has implications for the treatments that it will suggest. Listen to this podcast to take your understanding further. |
Applications of the model
|
Psychodynamic models of abnormality
Assumptions of the psychodynamic model of abnormalityAgain, if you can't remember the basic ideas of the Psychodynamic approach to Psychology from AS, then re-read them here first. Freud's personality theory of the id, ego and superego are crucial to his explanations of mental illness.
Disorders arise from conflict between the id, ego and superego. For example, if the superego becomes dominant over the other two, Freud believed that the person would suffer anxiety. As you will remember from Little Hans, Freud also thought that early childhood experiences and the unconscious were crucial to the formation of psychological disorders. Schizophrenia, for example, was explained as a "regression to the oral stage of development". Listen to this podcast for more. Or how about this psychodynamic abnormality rap?!
|
Applications of the model
|
Cognitive models of abnormality
Assumptions of the cognitive model of abnormalityAs you will remember from the AS studies on cognitive psychology, this approach assumes that a person's thoughts (or cognitions) are responsible for our behaviour. Therefore:
|
Applications of the model
|
Assignment 5 - Models factsheetTo demonstrate your understanding of the different models, read and complete the factsheet below.
|
Assignment 6 - Section A and C QuestionsHave a go at these questions from memory.
Paper 3 Section A question: 1. (a) Explain what is meant by ‘classifying abnormality’. [2] (b) Describe one way in which abnormality is classified. [4] 3. (a) Describe the main features of one model of abnormality (6) Try to write at least half a page for this question |
Bullet point 3 - Treatments of abnormality
• treatments of abnormality
Treatments derived from models: biological/medical; psychotherapies; cognitive-behavioural.
Effectiveness and appropriateness of treatments.
Treatments derived from models: biological/medical; psychotherapies; cognitive-behavioural.
Effectiveness and appropriateness of treatments.
Treatments using the medical modelRemember that the medical model believes that all psychological disorders have a physical cause. They therefore believe that psychological problems can be addressed by altering biological activity in the brain. Types of biological treatments could include:
|
How do drug treatments work?
In normal functioning
Drugs...
Read this article for a more in-depth summary of biological treatments. |
A closer look at a synapse |
Behavioural treatments of abnormality
Remember the key assumptions of the behaviourist approach from the section above. Behaviourist treatments try to reverse this process, weakening negative associations and behaviours and strengthening positive ones.
Examples of behavioural treatments which use classical conditioning include flooding and systematic desensitisation (both of which are used to treat phobias). Examples of behavioural treatments which use operant conditioning include behaviour modification and token economies (which have been used in a number of settings, from treating disruptive students in school to encouraging pro-social behaviour in schizophrenics). |
|
Psychodynamic treatments for abnormality
Key ideas of psychodynamic treatments include:
These aims can be achieved by using therapies such as dream analysis, free association or hypnosis. A good example of this process in action is the strange case of Anna O, one of Freud's patients. Read more about her here. |
Therapists should be...
|
Cognitive treatments for abnormality
Cognitive therapies for abnormality are usually combined with a behavioural element (so as well as trying to change patients' thoughts, they also try to change their behaviours). There are two major types of CBT:
Although they have some differences in their procedure and approach to therapy, they both have the same basic outlook. They are trying to replace faulty or irrational thought processes with healthier ones. |
|
Studying Abnormality - Prospective vs Retrospective studies
Retrospective studiesRetrospective studies begin after the outcome is already known (for example the person has developed a psychological condition). The study then looks back and examines exposures to suspected risk or protection factors in relation to their condition.
MOST studies of abnormality which involve cohorts (large groups of patients) tend to be of this type.
|
Prospective studiesA prospective study, in contrast, monitors a population for an outcome that has not happened at the start of the study, to determine how often it occurs in that population (e.g. following the children of schizophrenic mothers to see if they themselves develop schizophrenia). This allows us to observe risk and protection factors as they happen, so we have a much clearer idea of the real causes of the condition being studied.
|
End of section essay writing exercise - introducing Section B
Although you've written Section B 'describe' essays for some of the sections above, in reality you won't be asked this in the exam. You will get an essay on the whole section. The essay will have two parts, a 'describe' section and an 'evaluate' section. We'll now start looking at the 14b) 'evaluate' question as well.
14 a) Describe how one psychological model has been applied to abnormality. [8]
14 b) Evaluate how one psychological model has been applied to abnormality and include a discussion of competing models. [12]
First read this document, which covers the skills that we want you to learn when approaching these questions. In summary, you need to try to mention a range of information in question a), so try to mention things from all three bullet points in the specification (so here, something from each of the three approaches). For the question b), try to evaluate using issues and debates (same ones as from AS level). On this page, issues such as reductionism, determinism, ethics, data collection methods, scientific-ness, objectivity and other have been mentioned. Use these in your evaluations! Remember to use a PEE format if you find it helpful.
One final point. Make sure you answer the specific question asked! The 2 b) question will always have a little extra requirement in it, where it will ask you to focus your discussion on one specific area or issue. Here is it 'competing models'. At least a paragraph should consequently be devoted to comparing and contrasting different models of abnormality.
Generic mark schemes are given below. Read them carefully before you start writing and make sure your essays fulfill all the requirements. Please submit your essays through the form on the home page.
14 a) Describe how one psychological model has been applied to abnormality. [8]
14 b) Evaluate how one psychological model has been applied to abnormality and include a discussion of competing models. [12]
First read this document, which covers the skills that we want you to learn when approaching these questions. In summary, you need to try to mention a range of information in question a), so try to mention things from all three bullet points in the specification (so here, something from each of the three approaches). For the question b), try to evaluate using issues and debates (same ones as from AS level). On this page, issues such as reductionism, determinism, ethics, data collection methods, scientific-ness, objectivity and other have been mentioned. Use these in your evaluations! Remember to use a PEE format if you find it helpful.
One final point. Make sure you answer the specific question asked! The 2 b) question will always have a little extra requirement in it, where it will ask you to focus your discussion on one specific area or issue. Here is it 'competing models'. At least a paragraph should consequently be devoted to comparing and contrasting different models of abnormality.
Generic mark schemes are given below. Read them carefully before you start writing and make sure your essays fulfill all the requirements. Please submit your essays through the form on the home page.
End of section essay writing exercise - Introducing Section C
Section C in your exam always consists of two questions, one 6 mark recall question and one 8 mark application question. There are always two of these types of question, and you need to choose one.
You are a practising psychotherapist and you know how to treat patients and the underlying causes of disorders. One of your patients is a male who has a fear of women.
15 a) Describe the main features of psychotherapy. [6]
15 b) Suggest how you would use psychotherapy to help your patient to resolve his fear of women. [8]
The first question is a straightforward recall question. This is the longest question you will get which could focus on just a single theory. You need to write about half a page, so a simple revision check is to make sure that you can write half a page of description about every idea/theory/study that is specifically mentioned in the specification.
The second question allows you to be creative. There is no single right answer. All you have to do is give practical and specific ideas for how you might implement the theory you have described in the first question into the scenario they give you. About a page should be a good length.
Here you have to suggest how you would use psychotherapy to treat the patient. You therefore need to make sure that you are specifically referring to ideas of psychotherapy, and to the condition given in the question. It takes some getting used to writing this way, but it is an area that, with a little bit of practice, you will be able to do very well on.
Have a go at the questions above. Please submit your essays through the form on the home page.
You are a practising psychotherapist and you know how to treat patients and the underlying causes of disorders. One of your patients is a male who has a fear of women.
15 a) Describe the main features of psychotherapy. [6]
15 b) Suggest how you would use psychotherapy to help your patient to resolve his fear of women. [8]
The first question is a straightforward recall question. This is the longest question you will get which could focus on just a single theory. You need to write about half a page, so a simple revision check is to make sure that you can write half a page of description about every idea/theory/study that is specifically mentioned in the specification.
The second question allows you to be creative. There is no single right answer. All you have to do is give practical and specific ideas for how you might implement the theory you have described in the first question into the scenario they give you. About a page should be a good length.
Here you have to suggest how you would use psychotherapy to treat the patient. You therefore need to make sure that you are specifically referring to ideas of psychotherapy, and to the condition given in the question. It takes some getting used to writing this way, but it is an area that, with a little bit of practice, you will be able to do very well on.
Have a go at the questions above. Please submit your essays through the form on the home page.
Revision |
ExtensionNow THIS is a synapse! |