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Ab Psych(L2) - Lesson 2: Causal Factors and Viewpoints of Abnormal Behavior

Lesson 2: Causal Factors and Viewpoints of Abnormal Behavior
Course

Abnormal Psychology (PSY 9)

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Academic year: 2024/2025
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Isha Berceño
Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Valenzuela
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Causal Factors and Viewpoints of Abnormal

Behavior

Causes of Abnormal Behavior

  • Some scientists claim to have solved the

mystery of abnormal behavior.

  • Throughout much of the 20th century, many

psychologists vowed allegiance to one of 4

broad theories purporting to explain the

cause of psychological disorders – the

biological, psychodynamic, cognitive

behavioral and humanistic paradigms.

What is Paradigm?

  • a set of shared assumptions that includes both the

substance of a theory and beliefs about how

scientists should collect data and test the theory.

Biological Paradigm

  • Biological approaches emphasize causes

“within the skills”.

  • The discovery of the cause of general paresis

(general paralysis) is a remarkable and

historically important example of the

biological paradigm, which looks for

biological abnormalities that cause abnormal

behavior, eg. brain diseases, brain injuries, or

genetic disorders.

  • General paresis is caused by syphilis, a

sexually transmitted disease.

o General Paresis is a severe

manifestation of neurosyphilis.

o It is a chronic dementia which

ultimately results in death in as little

as 2-3 years.

o Patients generally have progressive

personality changes, memory loss,

and poor judgment.

o They can also have psychosis,

depression, or mania

Psychodynamic Paradigm

  • Psychodynamic theory highlights

unconscious processes.

  • The psychodynamic paradigm, an outgrowth

of the work of Sigmund Freud asserts that

abnormal behavior is caused by unconscious

mental conflicts that have roots in early

childhood experience.

  • Hysteria is characterized by unusual physical

symptoms in the absence of physical

impairment. eg. “Hysterical blindness”-

inability to see, out the blindness is not

caused by an organic dysfunction. In fact, the

afflicted individual may recover sight after

resolving an emotional problem.

  • Freud observed that hysterical patients did

not fake their symptoms. They also did not

consciously associate the symptoms with

emotional distress. Freud suggested instead,

that their psychological conflicts were

unconsciously “converted” into physical

symptoms.

  • Psychoanalytic theory divides the mind into

three parts: the id, ego and the superego.

Cognitive-Behavioral Paradigm

• Cognitive-behavioral viewpoints focus on

observable, learned behavior.

• 2 prominent early scientists who made

testing substantive contributions to learning

theory and research were the Russian

physiologist Ivan Pavlov and the US

psychologist B. Skinner. These

psychological scientists articulated the

principles of classical conditioning and

operant conditioning.

Classical Conditioning

• is learning through association, and it

involves four key components.

• here is an unconditioned stimulus (the meat

powder)., the stimulus that that

automatically produces the unconditioned

response (salivation).

• A conditioned stimulus (the bell) is a neutral

stimulus that, when repeatedly paired with an

unconditioned stimulus, comes to produce a

conditioned response (salivation).

• Finally, extinction gradually occurs once a

conditioned stimulus no longer is paired with

an unconditioned stimulus. Eventually, the

conditioned stimulus no longer elicits the

conditioned response.

Operant Conditioning

• Skinner’s operant conditioning asserts that

behavior is a function of its consequences.

Specifically, behavior increases if it is

rewarded, and it decreases if it is punished.

• In his numerous studies of rats and pigeons

in his famous “Skinner box”, Skinner

identified four different, crucial

consequences.

• Positive reinforcement is when the onset of a

stimulus increases the frequency of behavior

(eg. You get paid for your work).

• Negative reinforcement is when the

cessation of a stimulus increases the

frequency of behavior (eg. You get up turn off

your alarm clock)

• Punishment is when the onset of a stimulus

decreases the frequency of behavior (eg. You

spend less money after your parents scold

you); and response cost us when the

cessation of a stimulus decreases the

frequency of behavior (eg. You come home

on time after getting grounded).

• Extinction results from ending the

association between a behavior and its

consequences as in classical conditioning.

Humanistic Paradigm

• The humanistic paradigm argues that

behavior is a product of free will, the view that

we control, choose and are responsible for

our actions in many respects, this stance is a

reaction against determinism, the scientific

assumption that human behavior is caused

by potentially knowable factors (a position

held by the other paradigms.)

• Because free will, by definition, is not

predictable, it is impossible to determine the

causes of abnormal behavior according to

the humanistic paradigm.

• The humanistic paradigm is also

distinguished by its explicitly positive view of

human nature. Humanistic psychologist

blame abnormal behavior on society, not on

the individual, whom they see as inherently

good.

Biopsychosocial Model

Abnormal behavior is best understood in terms of the

biopsychosocial model, the combination of different

biological, psychological and social factors.

Systems theory – a way of integrating different

contributions to abnormal behavior its central

principle is holism, the idea that the whole is more

than the sum of its parts.

Biological Factors

• Biological factors in abnormal behavior

began with the neuron, or nerve cell.

Communication between neurons occurs

when the axon terminals release chemical

substances called neurotransmitters into

synapse between nerve cells.

• Disrupted communication among neurons,

particularly disruptions in the functioning of

various neurotransmitters is involved in

several types of abnormal behavior, although

you should be cautioned against mind-body

dualism.

• The brain is divided into three subdivisions:

the hindbrain, the midbrain, and the

forebrain. Because of the rudimentary state

of our knowledge about the brain, only the

most severe mental disorders have been

Cleary linked with abnormalities in

neuroanatomy.

observable behavior. Watson viewed the

therapist as a teacher and the goal of treatment

as providing new, more appropriate learning

experiences

Unlike psychoanalysis, CBT is not based on an

elaborate theory about human personality.

Rather, CBT is a practical approach oriented to

changing behavior rather than trying to

understand the dynamics of personality.

Humanistic Treatment

• Goal: Increase emotional awareness

• Primary Method: Empathy, support,

exploring emotions

• Length of Treatment: Varies; length not

typically structured

To be human is to be responsible for your own

life and for finding meaning in it. From this

perspective, therapy cannot solve problems for

you. Therapy can only help you to solve your own

problems to make better choices in your life

(Rogers, 1951).

The key to making better choices is increased

emotional awareness. Humanistic therapists

encourage people to recognize and experience

their true feelings.

Humanists view the therapist-client relationship

as the method for encouraging change. In

humanistic therapy the relationship is the

treatment.

Classification of Mental Disorder

• Formal classification systems for mental

disorders have been developed in order

to facilitate communication research,

and treatment planning.

• Clinicians assign a diagnosis if the

person’s behavior meets the specific

criteria for a particular type of disorder,

such as schizophrenia or major

depressive disorder.

• Currently, 2 diagnosis systems for mental

disorders are widely recognized:

o Diagnostic and Statistical

Method (DSM) - is published by

the American Psychiatric

Association.

o International Classification of

Disease (ICD) – published by the

World Health Organization.

Was this document helpful?

Ab Psych(L2) - Lesson 2: Causal Factors and Viewpoints of Abnormal Behavior

Course: Abnormal Psychology (PSY 9)

15 Documents
Students shared 15 documents in this course

University: Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Valenzuela

Was this document helpful?
Abnormal Psychology
Causal Factors and Viewpoints of Abnormal
Behavior
Causes of Abnormal Behavior
- Some scientists claim to have solved the
mystery of abnormal behavior.
- Throughout much of the 20th century, many
psychologists vowed allegiance to one of 4
broad theories purporting to explain the
cause of psychological disorders – the
biological, psychodynamic, cognitive
behavioral and humanistic paradigms.
What is Paradigm?
- a set of shared assumptions that includes both the
substance of a theory and beliefs about how
scientists should collect data and test the theory.
Biological Paradigm
• Biological approaches emphasize causes
“within the skills”.
• The discovery of the cause of general paresis
(general paralysis) is a remarkable and
historically important example of the
biological paradigm, which looks for
biological abnormalities that cause abnormal
behavior, eg. brain diseases, brain injuries, or
genetic disorders.
• General paresis is caused by syphilis, a
sexually transmitted disease.
o General Paresis is a severe
manifestation of neurosyphilis.
o It is a chronic dementia which
ultimately results in death in as little
as 2-3 years.
o Patients generally have progressive
personality changes, memory loss,
and poor judgment.
o They can also have psychosis,
depression, or mania
Psychodynamic Paradigm
• Psychodynamic theory highlights
unconscious processes.
• The psychodynamic paradigm, an outgrowth
of the work of Sigmund Freud asserts that
abnormal behavior is caused by unconscious
mental conflicts that have roots in early
childhood experience.
• Hysteria is characterized by unusual physical
symptoms in the absence of physical
impairment. eg. “Hysterical blindness”-
inability to see, out the blindness is not
caused by an organic dysfunction. In fact, the
afflicted individual may recover sight after
resolving an emotional problem.
• Freud observed that hysterical patients did
not fake their symptoms. They also did not
consciously associate the symptoms with
emotional distress. Freud suggested instead,
that their psychological conflicts were
unconsciously “converted” into physical
symptoms.
• Psychoanalytic theory divides the mind into
three parts: the id, ego and the superego.

Students also viewed

Related documents