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Unit 2 Introduction And Methods Of Research
- 1. Unit 2. Introduction and research methods Nevid et al (2006). Abnormal Psychology in a Changing World. USA:Prentice Hall. 2-34
- 2. Psychological disorder Is a pattern of abnormal behavior that is associated with states of emotional distress, such as anxiety or depression, or with impaired behavior or ability to function, such as difficulty holding a job or even distinguishing reality from fantasy.
- 3. Abnormal psychology Is the branch of psychology that studies abnormal behavior and ways of helping people who are affected by psychological disorders. It deals with description, causes, and treatment of abnormal behavior patterns.
- 4. Psychologist vs. psychiatrist A professional who has completed advanced training in psychology and obtained a license to practice psychology A medical doctor who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of emotional disorders. Medical model Mental illness Psychological disorder
- 5. Criteria determining abnormal behavior Unusualness.- behavior unusual Social deviance.- behavior deemed normal in one culture may be viewed as abnormal in another. Faulty Perceptions or interpretations of reality.- seeing things, hearing voices, delusions or ideas of persecution. Significant personal distress.- states of personal distress caused by troublesome emotions such anxiety, fear or depression. Maladaptive or self- defeating behavior.- behavior that leads to unhappiness. Dangerousness.- Dangerous to oneself or other.
- 6. Cultural bases of normal behavior We need to learn how people in different cultures experience emotional distress, including states of depression and anxiety, rather than imposing our perspectives on their experiences.
- 7. Historical perspective of abnormal behavior Abnormal behavior was taken as a sign of possession Prehistoric ancestors believed was caused by the inhabitation of evil spirits, so they did a threphination a harsh, prehistoric practice of cutting a hole in a person's skull, possibly in an attempt to release demons.
- 8. Origins of the medical Model: In “ Ill Humor” Hippocrates- Humors The celebrated physician of the Golden Age of Greece, challenged the prevailing beliefs of his time by arguing that illness of the body and mind were results of natural causes, not possession by supernatural spirits. He believed the health of the body and mind depend of the balance of humors , or vital fluids, in the body: phlegm, black bile, blood, and yellow bile.
- 9. Medieval Times The middle ages cover the millennium of European history from about 476 C.E. thorough 1450 C.E. After passing the Galen, belief in supernatural causes, especially the doctrine of possession, increased in influence and eventually dominated medieval thought. The church's treatment of choice was exorcism , this was used to expel the evil spirits that were believed to have possessed people.
- 10. The renaissance Began in Italy in the 1400s, the fear of witches also reached its height during this period. The late 15th through the 17th centuries were specially bad times to annoy your neighbors. Church officials believed that witches made pacts with the devil. Over 10,000 accused witches were killed in the next two centuries. In the case of the water-float test , suspects were dunked in a pool to certify they weren't possessed by the devil.
- 11. Asylums- London, St. Mary's of Bethlehem Hospital By the late 15th and early 16th centuries, asylums and madhouses, began to crop up throughout Europe. Many were former leprosariums, which were no longer needed because of the decline of leprosy after the late Middle Ages. Asylums often gave refuge to beggars as well as the mentally disturbed, and conditions were apalling. Residents were chained to beds and left to lie in their own waste or to wander about unassisted. Some asylums became public spectacles. In one asylum in London, St. Mary's of Bethlehem Hospital- form which the word bedlam is derived- the public could buy tickets to observe the antics of the inmates, much as we would pay to see a circus sideshow or animals at the zoo.
- 12. The reform Movement and Moral Therapy The modern era of treatment begins with the efforts of the Frenchmen Jean-Baptiste Pussin and Philippe Pinel in the late 18th an early 19 th countries. The philosophy of treatment that emerged form these efforts was labeled moral therapy. It was based on the belief that providing humane treatment in a relaxed and decent environment could restore functioning.
- 13. A Step Backward In the latter half of the 19th century, the belief that abnormal behaviors could be successfully treated or cured by moral therapy fell into disfavor. Mental institutions in the United States grew in size but provided little more than custodial care.
- 14. The Community Mental Health Movement: The Exodus form State Hospitals Another factor that laid the groundwork for the mass exodus form the mental hospitals was the development of the new class of drugs- the phenothiazines. Phenothiazines reduced the need for indefinite hospitals stays and permitted many people with schizophrenia to be discharged to halfway houses, group homes, and independent living.
- 15. Contemporary Perspectives on Abnormal Behavior Beliefs in possession or demonology, as we have seen, persisted until the 18th century, when society began to turn toward reason and science to explain natural phenomena and human behavior. The nascent sciences of biology, chemistry, physics, and astronomy promised knowledge.
- 16. The biological perspective Wilhem Griesinger (1817-1868) argued that abnormal behavior was rooted in diseases of the brain
- 17. The Biological Perspective Emil Kraepelin (1856-1926) studied the description and classification of mental disorders, leading to what we now call the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, published by the American Psychiatric Association. He believed that if symptom clusters could be identified then research could more easily begin the work of identifying the etiology or causation. He is likely best known for identifying and naming dementia praecox, the precursor to what we now call schizophrenia.
- 19. The Psychological Perspective Psychodynamic model: The theoretical model of Freud and his followers, in which abnormal behavior is viewed as the product of clashing forces within the personality.
- 20. The Sociocultural Perspective Sociocultural theorists believe the causes of abnormal behavior may be found in the failures of society rather than in the person. Sociocultural factors also focus on relationships between mental health and social factors such as gender, social class, ethnicity, and lifestyle.
- 21. The Biopsychosocial Perspective Biopsychosocial model: An integrative model for explaining abnormal in terms of the interactions of biological, psychological and sociocultural factors.
- 22. Research Methods in Abnormal Psychology Abnormal psychology is a branch of the scientific discipline of psychology. Research in the field is based on the application of the scientific method. Scientific method: a systematic method of conducting scientific research in which theories or assumptions are examined in the light of evidence.
- 23. Description, explanation, prediction, and control: The Objectives of science Description is one of the primary objectives of science. To understand abnormal behavior, we must first learn to describe it. Description allows us to recognize abnormal behavior and provides the basis for explaining it. Psychologists and other scientists use the scientific method to advance the description, explanation, prediction and control of abnormal behavior.
- 24. The Scientific Method Formulating a research question. Framing the research in the form of a hypothesis. Testing the hypothesis. Drawing conclusions about the hypothesis.
- 25. Ethics in research Ethical principles are designed to promote the dignity of the individual, protect human welfare, and preserve scientific integrity. Informed consent: the principle that subjects should receive enough information about an experiment beforehand to decide freely whether to participate. Confidentiality: protection of the identity of participants by keeping records secure and not disclosing their identities.
- 26. Naturalistic Observation A form of research in which behavior is observed and measured in its natural environment.
- 27. The correlation method Correlation: a relationship or association betewwn variables. Variables: factors that are measured (dependent variables) or manipulated (independent variables]) in expermients. Longitudinal study: a research study in which subjects are followed over time.
- 28. Experimental method A scientific method that aims to discover cause an effect relationships by manipulating independent variables and observing the effects on the dependent variables.
- 29. Independent variables: factors that are manipulated in experiments. Dependent variables: outcomes of an experiment believed to the dependent on the effects of an independent variable. Experimental group: in an experiment, a group that receives the experimental treatment.
- 30. Control group: in an experiment, a group that does not receive the experimental treatment. Random assignment: a method pf assigning research subjects at random to experimental or control groups to balance these groups on the characteristics or people that comprise them. Selection factor: a type of bias in which differences between experimental and control groups results form the differences in the subjects placed in the groups, not from the independent variable.
- 31. Controlling for subjects expectancies To control for subject expectancies, experimenters rely on produces that render subjects blind, or uninformed about the treatments they are receiving. The term placebo: an inert medication or bogus treatment that is intended to control for expectancy effects.
- 32. Experimental validity Internal validity: the degree to which manipulation of the independent variables can be causally related to changes in the dependent variables. External validity: the degree to which experimental results can be generalized to other settings and conditions. Construct validity: the degree to which treatment effects can be accounted for by the theoretical mechanisms represented in the independent variables.
- 33. Epidemiological studies Research studies that track rates of occurrence of particular disorder among different populations groups. Survey method: a research method in which large samples of people are questioned by means of a survey instrument.
- 34. Rates of occurrence of a given disorder are expressed in terms of incidence, the number of new cases occurring during a specific period of time, and prevalence, the overall number of cases of a disorder existing in the population during a given period of time.
- 35. Samples and populations Random sample: a sample that is drawn in such a way that every member of a population has an equal chance of being included.
- 36. Kinship studies Kinship studies attempt to desentangle the roles of heredity and environment in determining behavior. Genotype: the set of traits specified by an individual´s genetic code. Phenotype: an individual´s actual or expressed traits. Proband: the case first diagnosed of a given disorder.
- 37. Twin studies Identical twins have 100% of their genes in common, as compared to 50% overlap among fraternal twins or any two other siblings. Establishing that identical twins are more likely to share a given disorder that are fraternal twins provides strong evidence for a genetic contribution to the disorder.
- 38. Adoptee studies: studies that compare the traits and behavior patterns of a adopted children to those of their biological parents and their adoptive parents. Twins Adoptees