Abnormal Psychology / Chapter 1 Terms

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psychological disorder

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Psychological dysfunction associated with distress or impairment in functioning that is not a typical or culturally expected response.

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phobia

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Psychological disorder characterized by marked and persistent fear of an object or situation.

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abnormal behavior

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Actions that are unexpected and often evaluated negatively because they differ from typical or usual behavior.

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psychopathology

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Scientific study of psychological disorders.

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scientist-practitioner

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Mental health professional expected to apply scientific methods to his or her work. A scientist-practitioner must know the latest research on diagnosis and treatment, must evaluate his or her methods for effectiveness, and may generate research to discover information about disorders and their treatment.

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presenting problem

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Original complaint reported by the client to the therapist. The actual treated problem may be a modification derived from the presenting problem.

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clinical depression

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Details of the combination of behaviors, thoughts, and feeling of an individual that make up a particular disorder.

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prevalence

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Number of people displaying a disorder in the total population at any given time.

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incidence

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Number of new cases of a disorder appearing during a specific period.

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course

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Pattern of development and change of a disorder over time.

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prognosis

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Predicted development of a disorder over time.

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etiology

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Cause or source of a disorder.

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exorcism

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Religious ritual that attributes disordered behavior to possession by demons and seeks to treat the individual by driving the demons from the body.

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psychosocial treatment

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Treatment practices that focuses on social and cultural factors (such as family experience), as well as psychological influences. These approaches include cognitive, behavioral, and interpersonal methods.

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moral therapy

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Psychosocial approach in the 19th century that involved treating patients as normally as possible in normal environments.

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mental hygiene movement

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Mid-19th-century effort to improve care of the mentally disordered by informing the public of their mistreatment.

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psychoanalysis

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Assessment and therapy pioneered by Sigmund Freud that emphasizes exploration of, and insight into, unconscious processes and conflicts.

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behaviorism

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Explanation of human behavior, including dysfunction, based on principles of learning and adaptation derived from experimental psychology.

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unconscious

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Part of the psychic makeup that is outside the awareness of the person.

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catharsis

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Rapid or sudden release of emotional tension thought to be important factor in psychoanalytic therapy.

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psychoanalytic model

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Complex and comprehensive theory originally advanced by Sigmund Freud that seeks to account for the development and structure of personality, as well as the origin of abnormal behavior, based primarily on inferred inner entities and forces.

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id

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The unconscious psychic entity present at birth representing basic drives.

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ego

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The psychic entity responsible for finding realistic and practical ways to satisfy id drives.

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superego

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The psychic entity representing the internalized moral standards of parents and society.

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intrapsychic conflicts

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In psychoanalytic theory, a struggle among the id, ego, and superego.

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defense mechanisms

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Common pattern of behavior, often an adaptive coping style when it occurs in moderation, observed in response to a particular situation. Psychoanalytic theory suggests that defense mechanisms are unconscious processes originating in the ego.

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psychosexual stages of development

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Psychoanalytic concept of the sequence of phases a person passes through during development. Each stage is named for the location on the body where id gratification is maximal at that time.

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castration anxiety

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In psychoanalysis, the fear in young boys that they will be mutilated genitally because of their lust for their mothers.

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neurosis

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Obsolete psychodynamic term for a psychological disorder thought to result from an unconscious conflict and the anxiety it causes. Plural is neuroses.

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ego psychology

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Psychoanalytic theory that emphasizes the role of the ego in development and attributes psychological disorders to failure of the ego to manage impulses and internal conflicts. Also known as self-psychology.

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object relations

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Modern development in psychodynamic theory involving the study of how children incorporate the memories and values of people who are close and important to them.

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collective unconscious

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Accumulated wisdom of a culture collected and remembered across generations, a psychodynamic concept introduced by Carl Jung.

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free association

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Psychoanalytic therapy technique intended to explore threatening material repressed into the unconscious. The patient is instructed to say whatever comes to mind without censoring.

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dream analysis

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Psychoanalytic therapy method in which dream content is examined as symbolic of id impulses and intrapsychic conflicts.

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psychoanalyst

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Therapist who practices psychoanalysis after earning either an M.D. or a Ph.D. degree and receiving additional specialized postdoctoral training.

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transference

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Psychoanalytic concept suggesting that clients may seek to relate to the therapist as they do to important authority figures, particularly their parents.

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psychodynamic psychotherapy

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Contemporary version of psychoanalysis that still emphasizes unconscious processes and conflicts but is briefer and more focused on specific problems.

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self-actualizing

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Process emphasized in humanistic psychology in which people strive to achieve their highest potential against difficult life experiences.

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person-centered therapy

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Therapy method in which the client, rather than the counselor, primarily directs the course of discussion, seeking self-discovery and self-responsibility.

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unconditional positive regard

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Acceptance by the counselor of the client's feelings and actions without judgment or condemnation.

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behavioral model

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Explanation of human behavior, including dysfunction, based on principles of learning and adaptation derived from experimental psychology.

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classical conditioning

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Fundamental learning process first described by Ivan Pavlov. An event that automatically elicits a response is paired with another stimulus event that does not (a neutral stimulus). After repeated pairings, the neutral stimulus becomes a conditioned stimulus that by itself can elicit the desired response.

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extinction

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Learning process in which a response maintained by reinforcement to operant conditioning or pairing in classical conditioning decreases when that reinforcement or pairing is removed; also the procedure of removing that reinforcement or pairing.

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introspection

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Early, nonscientific approach to the study of psychology involving systematic attempts to report thoughts and feelings that specific stimuli evoked.

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systematic desensitization

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Behavior therapy technique to diminish excessive fears, involving gradual exposure to the feared stimulus paired with a positive coping experience, usually relaxation.

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behavior therapy

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Behavior therapy technique to diminish excessive fears, involving gradual exposure to the feared stimulus paired with a positive coping experience, usually relaxation.

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reinforcement

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In operant conditioning, consequences for behavior that strengthen it or increase its frequency. Positive reinforcement involves the contingent delivery of a desired consequence. Negative reinforcement is the contingent escape from an aversive consequence. Unwanted behaviors may result from reinforcement of those behaviors or the failure to reinforce desired behaviors.

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shaping

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In operant conditioning, the development of a new response by reinforcing successively more similar versions of that response. Both desirable and undesirable behaviors may be learned in this manner.