Psychologists who study psychological disorders, along with practitioners who treat

disorders, often utilize a particular theoretical perspective. Each perspective

attempts to explain the origin of a disorder and/or determine the best method for
treatment. These explanations and treatments build on the history, theories, and
perspectives introduced in the first two units as well as on cognitive psychology in
particular. Through observing behavior and engaging in discussion that illuminates
a client’s thought process, psychologists gather information and draw conclusions.
For some psychologists, a single perspective cannot fully explain a disorder. This
leads them to more integrated perspectives to understand and treat
psychological disorders.

➔ Why is each ➔ 8.1 Introduction to Psychological

psychological Disorders
➔ 8.2 Psychological Perspectives and
perspective necessary Etiology of Disorders
8.3 Neurodevelopmental and
in the treatment of ➔
Schizophrenic Spectrum Disorders
disorders? ➔ 8.4 Bipolar, Depressive, Anxiety, and
Obsessive-Compulsive and Related
➔ How are psychological Disorders
➔ 8.5 Trauma- and Stressor Related,
disorders treated? Dissociative, and Somatic Symptom
and Related Disorders
➔ 8.6 Feeding and Eating, Substance
and Addictive, and Personality
Disorders
➔ 8.7 Introduction to Treatment of
Psychological Disorders
➔ 8.8 Psychological Perspectives and
Treatment of Disorders
➔ 8.9 Treatment of Disorders from the
Biological Perspective
➔ 8.10 Evaluating Strengths,
Weaknesses, and Empirical Support
for Treatments of Disorders
 Psychology would not be the
science that it is today without the
contributions of many talented
men and women
Aaron Beck You can expect about 10% of items ● Abnormal Behavior
Created the popular in previous AP Psychology exams to
cognitive behavioral
maladaptive actions or
refer to specific names from either cognitive processes that
therapy (CBT)
the history of psychology or current
defy social norms
researchers

You should connect the name with ● Deinstitutionalization

Albert Ellis the concept/experiment that they late twentieth-century
An early pioneer of contributed to psychology movement to release
cognitive therapy large numbers of asylum
who created
rational-emotive patients and reintegrate
behavioral therapy them into their
communities

● Diagnostic and
Sigmund Freud Statistical Manual of
the founder of
psychoanalytic Mental Disorders (DSM-5)
therapy, the first the diagnostic tool
“talking cure” published by the
American Psychiatric
Association, used to
Mary Cover Jones categorize and diagnose
one of the first psychological disorders
people to apply
classical conditioning Psychodynamic
techniques to ● Psychologist- can’t
Emphasizes behavior is
psychological prescribe meds, supports
determined by your past
treatment;
successfully treated a
experiences that are left people through
in the unconscious psychotherapy
child’s rabbit phobia
mind and childhood
by pairing rabbits
experiences ● Psychiatrist-can prescribe
with a positive meds, identify
stimulus
disorders/diagnose,
Cognitive generally works inside
Carl Rogers creator Focuses on internal
of client-centered processes of the mind hospitals
therapy, the most influencing behavior
popular humanistic
● Medical Model maintains
psychotherapy
that abnormal behaviors are
Biological
symptoms of an underlying
The influence of
genetics and brain disease
B.F. Skinner a chemistry (physical & ● Psychoanalytic Model
behaviorist who biological processes) maintains that abnormal
believed that
behaviors are caused by
application of
learning principles repressed memories of
Behavioral childhood trauma and
could help patients Focus on observable
improve their unconscious conflicts
behaviors, people/
functioning animals are controlled ● Humanistic Model views
by their environment, psychological disorders as
Joseph Wolpe positive/negative temporary impediments to
created systematic consequences self-actualization that result
desensitization, now from unsatisfied needs
used to treat phobias Humanistic ● Cognitive Model maintains
Human capacity for
that abnormal behaviors
choice and growth,
motivation for people result from faulty beliefs and
to fulfill their maladaptive emotional
potential responses
● Biological Model maintains ● Posttraumatic Stress ● Borderline Personality
that psychological disorders Disorder (PTSD) Result of Disorder Characterized by
result from imbalances in brain some trauma experienced repeated instability in
chemistry and other biological by the victim. Victims interpersonal
causes, including heredity and
evolution re-experience the relationships, self-image,
● Sociocultural Model maintains traumatic event in and mood and by
that psychological disorders are nightmares about the impulsive behavior
culturally specific and caused by Histrionic Personality
a variety of social and cultural
event, or flashbacks in ●
factors which they relieve the Disorder Characterized by
● Behavioral Model maintains event a pattern of excessive
that abnormal behaviors are the emotionality (dramatic)
products of learning, just like
any other behaviors Mood Disorders and attention seeking
● Bipolar Disorder Mood ● Narcissistic Personality
● Currently, in the DSM-5, swings alternating Disorder Characterized by
between periods of major a broad pattern of
abnormal behavior is
depression and mania grandiosity, need for
generally defined as…
● Major Depressive admiration, and lack of
● Deviant, Distressing,
Disorder Involves intense empathy
Dysfunctional,
depressed mood, reduced ● Avoidant Personality
Dangerous
interest or pleasure in Disorder Characterized by
activities, loss of energy, consistent discomfort and
Anxiety Disorders
and problems in making restraint in social
● Generalized Anxiety
decisions for a minimum situations, overwhelming
Disorder (GAD)
of 2 weeks feelings of inadequacy,
Experience excessive
and extreme sensitivity to
anxiety under most
Personality Disorders negative
circumstances and worry
● Paranoid Personality evaluation/potential
about practically anything
Disorder “Accusatory” rejection, humanilitation
● Panic Disorder Anxiety
Pattern of distrust and ● Dependent Personality
disorder marked by
suspiciousness about other Disorder Characterized by
recurrent and
people’s motives, individual a pattern of clinging and
unpredictable panic
thinks that others are out to obedience, fear of
attacks
threaten, betray, exploit, or separation, and an
● Specific Phobia Intense,
harm ongoing need to be taken
irrational fear responses to
● Schizoid Personality care of
specific stimuli
Disorder “Aloof” ● Obsessive Compulsive
● Agoraphobia Afraid to be
Characterized by persistent Personality Disorder
in public situations from
avoidance of social Characterized by an
which escape might be
relationships and little intense focus on
difficult or help
expression of emotion orderliness, perfectionism,
unavailable if panic-like or
● Schizotypal Personality and control that the
embarrassing symptoms
Disorder “Awkward” person loses flexibility,
were to occur
Characterized by extreme openness, and efficiency
● Obsessive-Compulsive
discomfort in close
Disorder (OCD)
relationships, very odd Neurodevelopmental
Compound disorder of
patterns of thinking and Disorders
thought and behavior
perceiving, and behavioral ● Attention Deficit/
Obsessions are persistent,
eccentricities Hyperactivity Disorder
intrusive, and unwanted
● Antisocial Personality (ADHD) Disorder marked
thoughts that an
Disorder (APD) by the inability to focus
individual cannot get out
Characterized by a general attention, or overactive
of his or her mind
pattern of disregard for and and impulsive behavior, or
Compulsions are
violation of other people’s both
ritualistic behaviors
rights (closely linked to
performed repeatedly
criminal behavior)
 Somatic Disorders Research suggests that
● Autism Spectrum
● Somatic Symptom psychotherapy generally
Disorder (ASD) Disorder
Disorder (SDD) helps patients to make
marked by extreme
Characterized by physical positive changes in their lives,
unresponsiveness to
symptoms including pain, but some types of treatment
others, severe
and high anxiety in these are more effective for
communication deficits,
individuals about having a particular conditions than
and highly repetitive and
disease others
rigid behaviors, interests,
● Illness Anxiety Disorder
and activities
(IAD) Characterized by a ● Diagnostic Labels the
● Intellectual Disability (ID) categories of disorders
preoccupation with a
Disorder marked by
serious medical or health recognized by the DSM,
intellectual functioning
condition with either no or used to diagnose patients
and adaptive behavior
mild physical (somatic) ● Rosenhan Experiment
that are well below
symptoms such as nausea Experiment underscoring
average
or dizziness that has the way that diagnostic
persisted for 6 months labels can bias people’s
Neurocognitive Disorders
● Conversion Disorder perceptions of patients;
● Alzheimer’s Disease Fatal
Characterized by loss of hospital staff did not
degenerative disease in
some bodily function recognize that
which brain neurons
without physical damage pseudopatients with a
progressively die,
to the affected organs or diagnosis of mental illness
characterized by loss of
their neural connections were in fact healthy
memory, reasoning,
emotion, and control of
Dissociative Disorders ● Confidentiality the
bodily functions
● Dissociative Amnesia Loss obligation not to disclose
of memory for a traumatic particular kinds of
Eating & Feeding Disorders
event or period of time that information, including
● Anorexia Nervosa
is too painful for an mental health
(Anorexia) Life-threatening
individual to remember information, except in
eating disorder that
involves intense fear of ● Dissociative Identity limited cases, Mandated
weight gain or becoming Disorder (DID) Rare mental in the U.S. by HIPAA
overweight, distorted disorder characterized by at ● Insanity immunity from
perception of one’s least two distinct and legal responsibility due to
weight/body shape, relatively enduring an inability to tell the
persistent restriction of identities or dissociated difference between right
caloric intake personality states that and wrong; a legal
● Body dysmorphia recurrently control a category, not a psychiatric
increasing cognitive person’s behavior one
misperception of being ● Schizophrenia Psychotic
overweight despite disorder in which personal, ● Psychotherapy an
evidence to the contrary social, and occupational ongoing relationship
● Bulimia Nervosa (Bulimia) between a patient and a
functioning deteriorate as a
Recurrent binge eating therapist, in which the
result of unusual
followed by compensatory
perceptions, odd thoughts, two discuss the patient’s
behaviors for the intake of
disturbed emotions, and experiences and
food, such as purging
motor abnormalities symptoms
● Binge Eating Disorder
Uncontrollably eating a ● Pharmacological
large amount of food in a ● Dopamine Hypothesis Treatment when a mental
short period of time; after a High fluctuation of levels of health professional
bingeing episode a person dopamine can be prescribes a drug for a
will not purge and will feel responsible for patient to alleviate
an extreme sense of guilt schizophrenic symptoms psychological distress
Exposure Treatment ● Core Belief a deeply held ● Resistance “Mental
● Flooding Exposing people belief that guides an Blocks” The patient’s
to fear-invoking objects or individual’s thoughts conscious or unconscious
situations intensely and ● Cognitive Restructuring attempt to block
rapidly a cognitive therapy disturbing memories,
technique that requires motives, and experiences
● Systematic patients to challenge (sensitive material)
Desensitization irrational beliefs and ● Transference The process
Developed by Joseph replace them with more by which a patient
Wolpe, a client makes a realistic ones projects or transfers
list of fears and then unresolved conflicts and
learns to relax while ● Cognitive-Behavioral feelings onto the therapist
concentrating on these Therapists Human
fears emotions and behavior ● Client-Centered Therapy
are predominantly the most popular
● Aversion Therapy Pairing generated by ideas, humanistic therapy, which
an undesirable behavior beliefs, attitudes and views patients as “clients”
with an aversive stimulus thinking and focuses on
in the hope that the ● Rational-Emotive authenticity and healthy
unwanted behavior will Behavior Therapy (REBT) self-concept
eventually be reduced Developed in 1950s by ● Unconditional Positive
Albert Ellis, psychological Regard, allow client to
● Token Economy problems arise when steer the direction of the
Behavioral strategy relies thoughts are irrational therapy, clients have value
on reinforcement to and lead to behavioral ● Active listening therapist
modify behavior. Clients consequences that are listens to client,
are allowed to earn tokens distressful paraphrasing what the
that can be exchanged for client says, prevents
special privileges or ● Aaron Beck’s Cognitive advice or judgements
desired items Therapy Researched by
Aaron Beck, based on the Biomedical Therapy
● Biofeedback Mind-body idea that how we think ● Antidepressant Drugs
technique that involves (cognition), how we feel Elevate mood by affecting
using visual or auditory (emotion) and how we act neurotransmitters such as
feedback to gain control (behavior) all interact serotonin that are linked to
over involuntary bodily together depression
functions ● SSRI (selective serotonin
reuptake inhibitor) –
● Mindfulness strategies to
Gestalt Therapy a blocks the reuptake of
● cultivate a state of
serotonin
humanistic therapy that conscious awareness ● Electroconvulsive Therapy
maintains that
(ECT) A biological
psychological distress ● Psychoanalysis The treatment in which a brain
occurs when patients primary focus of seizure is triggered as an
focus on what could be, psychodynamic therapy is electric current passes
rather than on the present to uncover the through electrodes
moment; developed by unconscious content of a attached to the patient’s
Fritz Perls client’s psyche in order to forehead
alleviate psychic tension ● Deep Brain Stimulation
● Cognitive Distortions ● Free Association The an invasive biomedical
automatic and irrational client spontaneously
treatment that delivers
perceptions of the world electric shocks to the brain
reports thoughts, feelings,
that contribute to feelings directly through an
and mental images that
of anxiety or depression implanted electrode
come to mind (no sometimes used for severe
censorship) OCD