|
Answer to #1
Shared environment those aspects of a family that impact all members more or less equally; parenting style, neighborhood, extended family members, etc.
Nonshared environment those aspects of a family or an individual that impact each member differently; gender, age, relationship to siblings, peer relationships, temperament, academic skills, etc.
Examples any reasonable personal example that illustrates an understanding of these concepts
Answer to #2
Understanding and treating the distressing behavior caused by mental illness is the main objective of abnormal psychology. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.; DSM-5; American Psychiatric Association APA, 2013), the most widely used classification system of mental disorders, indicates that a mental disorder has the following components: (a) involves a significant disturbance in thinking, emotional regulation, or behavior caused by a dysfunction in the basic psychological, biological, or developmental processes involved in normal development; (b) causes significant distress or difficulty with day-to-day functioning; and (c) is not merely a culturally expected response to common stressors or losses or a reflection of political or religious beliefs that conflict with societal norms. This definition is quite broad and raises many questions. First, when are symptoms or patterns of behavior significant enough to have meaning? Second, is it possible to have a mental disorder without any signs of distress or discomfort? Third, what criteria do we use to decide if a behavior pattern is a reflection of an underlying psychological or biological dysfunction and not merely a normal variation or an expectable response to common stressors? Complex definitions aside, most practitioners agree that mental disorders involve behavior or other distressing symptoms that depart from the norm and that harm affected individuals or others. Although the criteria for mental disorders remain a subject of debate, certain behaviors are considered abnormal in most situations. These behaviors include refusal to leave your house; depression so severe that you sleep much of the day; starving yourself because you are terrified of gaining weight; experiencing frequent nightmares involving a trauma you experienced; forgetting your own identity; feeling overwhelmed with fear at the sight of a spider; avoiding contact with objects such as doorknobs because of the fear of germs; believing that others can hear your thoughts; seeing aliens inside your home; collecting so many items that your health and safety are jeopardized; and intentionally making your own child sick with the purpose of receiving attention. Even considering varying cultural norms, these situations would be seen as abnormal.
Answer to #3
Development families impact a child's development; children's problems are a reflection of family problems; some problems are clearly a result of family problems and some problems impact how the family functions in response to the child's problems
Psychopathology a child's psychopathology is a reflection of family psychopathology
Treatment focuses on both the child and the family
Answer to #4
Prehistoric societies appeared to believe in demonology and likely attributed abnormal behaviors to evil spirits that inhabited a victim's body. Treatment seems to have consisted of trephining (drilling a hole in a person's brain to let the evil spirit out). The early Greeks, Chinese, Hebrews, and Egyptians treated behavior they perceived as abnormal with exorcism, which consisted of elaborate prayers, noise, emetics, and bodily assaults to excise the evil spirits.
Two influential themes came from Greek and Roman cultures in which (1) a relationship was acknowledged between mental disorder and psychological conflict, and (2) mental disorder was viewed as a physical illness with biological causes. Hippocrates' treatments included tranquility, moderate exercise, a careful diet, abstinence from sexual activity, and sometimes bloodletting. He understood that often family dynamics can foster deviant behavior. The Roman physician Galen explained the role of the brain and central nervous system in mental functioning; he codified all European medical knowledge from Hippocrates' time to his own.
After the fifth century, mental disorders in many cultures were again viewed as the result of possession by evil spirits. Treatment during this period reverted to torturous exorcistic procedures to drive out the devil. In the thirteenth century belief in the power of the supernatural was so prevalent that it often created mass madness in whole populations. As the authority of the Catholic Church was increasingly challenged beginning in the fifteenth century, the Malleus Maleficarum was published (1486) as a guide for detecting witches, who were believed to have made a pact with Satan. As a result of the consequent witch hunts over the next 200 years, thousands of innocent men, women, and children were beheaded, burned alive, drowned, and otherwise tortured and mutilated.
In the late 1700s the emphasis on evil spirits, demons, and witchcraft gave way to the moral movement, with reformists advocating for more humane treatment of people with mental disorders. Specifically, reformists advocated treating patients kindly and respectfully, offering guidance and support, and encouraging fresh air and activity. In addition to changes in the treatment of the mentally ill, the scientific study of mental disorders was emphasized. People came to realize that psychological disorders were caused by physical factors or personal and social conditions. Along with this realization came the tradition of scientific observation and exploration leading to developments such as the diagnostic classification system of Emile Kraepelin and Freud's theory of personality. In the twentieth century, a strong emphasis was placed on exploring the biological bases of psychological disorders (including brain functioning, genetic transmission of disorder, and neurochemical factors), as well as on social behaviors acquired through learning.
Toward the end of the twentieth century, and extending into the twenty-first, as society has become increasingly multicultural, multiracial, and multilingual, multicultural psychology has had a major impact on the mental health professions. This approach stresses the importance of culture, race, ethnicity, gender, age, socioeconomic class, and other similar factors for understanding and treating abnormal behavior. There is currently an understanding that the multipath model is important for understanding abnormality by considering biological, psychological, social, and sociocultural dimensions for understanding human complexity.
Answer to #5
Any reasonable answer that describes a focus on an emphasis on prevention, positive subjective experience, positive individual traits, positive institutions, building on strengths, etc.
Answer to #6
During the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries in Europe, when the Roman Catholic Church was under attack, witchcraft became a common explanation for deviant behavior. At one time, treatment was relatively mild for people who were seen as being involuntarily possessed by the devil. Exorcisms involving incantations, purges, fasting, and other rituals were used to restore people to sanity. Harsher treatments were reserved for those considered voluntarily in league with the devil. Eventually, the distinction blurred. In 1484, the pope called for the identification and extermination of witches. More than 100,000 people were executed. Historians suggest that mental disorders were at the roots of witchcraft persecution.
The Renaissance marked a time of increased rationality and concern about human welfare and dignity called humanism. Johann Weyer, a German physician, courageously challenged church teachings on witchcraft and argued that these people suffered from physical or social problems. Treatment of mentally ill people continued to be cruel throughout the 1600s and 1700s. At the beginning of the 1800s in France (Philippe Pinel), England (William Tuke), and the United States (Benjamin Rush), a new viewpoint called moral treatment came about. It argued that people who were treated humanely could be restored to sanity. Later, Dorothea Dix campaigned for reforms in mental hospitals and established hospitals for the poor in the United States. The treatment of mental patients has often been exposed as inadequate or heartless.Still, most people would agree that conditions are better today than at any time in the past.
|
Quick Reply
