The behavioral perspective indicates that the reasoning for abnormal behavior is because there is inadequate learning and conditioning. The cognitive perspective believes abnormal behavior is because of false assumptions of particular thoughts and behaviors. The social-cultural perspective defines abnormal behavior as behavior learned from the environment. Abnormal psychology has evolved into a scientific discipline over centuries of research. Abnormal psychology has been studied and examined for answers over these centuries.
Abnormal Psychology Historical Perspective 1 Running Head: Abnormal Psychology Historical Perspectives Historical Perspectives of Abnormal Psychology Nickole Caprio University of Phoenix September 13, 2010 Historical Perspectives of Abnormal Psychology 2 Introduction Abnormal psychology is a field in psychology that deals with psychopathology and abnormal behavior. The phrase comprises a wide array of illnesses, from depression to obsession-compulsion to sexual deviation and numerous more (Frude, 1998). Counselors, clinical psychologists and psychotherapists frequently operate in this field. Origins of abnormal psychology Abnormal psychology is part of psychology that is essential in studying abnormal behavior, knowledge and partially comprehends condition like hypnosis and dreams (Frude, 1998). Abnormal behavior and conditions vary by tradition to tradition and person to person.
Perspectives of Abnormal Psychology Ann Bacon Psy/410 Abnormal Psychology October 24, 2011 Kristi Lane University of Phoenix Perspectives of Abnormal Psychology What is abnormal psychology? Abnormal psychology is the branch of psychology that deals with behaviors that are not considered normal as well as psychological phenomena such as dreams and altered mental states, which have not been explained. The goal of this branch of psychology is to understand abnormal behavior as well as to determine how and if the behavior needs to be addressed and to develop a treatment plan that will help individuals. This branch of psychology also recognizes that there are many influences such as environmental influences on psychological development. The goal of many mental health professionals is not to force an individual to achieve normality but to help individuals who struggle with mental and emotional disorders to achieve fulfilling and active lives.
The psychodynamic theory of offending believes criminality is caused by abnormal development of the psyche. The theory explains criminality happening for 4 different reasons, first being a weak superego as it doesn't punish them for acting on impulses from the id, second being a deviant superego as it has deviant values so doesn't react to certain crimes, third being a strong superego as they commit a crime to be punished to rid the guilt imposed by the superego or they suppress so much anger and frustration that one day they 'explode' releasing it in one go, and forth being maternal deprivation (proposed by Bowlby) as it leads to affectionless psychopathy so they can't form meaningful relationships. A major problem with the psychodynamic theory is that the concepts are difficult to test, and it relies on the unconscious mind which is impossible to prove meaning there is no empirical evidence. The biological approach can also be argued as difficult to test or proved because the CNS, ANS and endocrine system are very complex and interact with each other in a complex way, and because of this they are still not completely understood. The biological research is arguably better than the psychodynamic research because it relies on quantitative and objective data which will be interpreted the same by
Historical Perspectives of Abnormal Psychology Abnormal psychology is defined as the study of psychological characteristics that often deviate outside of the norm (Cherry, 2005). This perspective generally encompasses an array of perspectives ranging from disorders to altered mental patterns that affect the normal functioning of an individual as part of society. Typically, this type of impairment is accompanied by behavior, either disruptive or of a distorted nature. There are several approaches used in abnormal psychology in addition, it is important to examine the origin of abnormal psychology in an effort to rationalize the evolution of this scientific discipline (Cherry, 2005). To understand the basis of abnormal psychology, it is essential to recognize that the individuals who make up these categories fall very far at the other end of the normal spectrum.
Historical Perspectives of Abnormal Psychology When distinguishing between normal and abnormal behavior, what appears to be abnormal behavior to some people may be normal by others. Psychopathology is also another term used to describe abnormal psychology. Feelings, thoughts, and behaviors are distinguishing factors to consider in assessing mental health behaviors. The following information provides a brief history and origin of abnormal psychology, the development of abnormal psychology into a scientific discipline, and the application of the three theoretical models of abnormal psychology. Origins of Abnormal Psychology The deinstitutionalization movement began in the 1960s where the number of psychiatric hospitals radically decreased and conditions for patients improved drastically (Hansell & Damour, 2008).
Historical Perspectives of Abnormal Psychology Defining abnormal behavior requires first defining normal behavior. Additionally, one must determine the spectrum that links one to the other. After determining the extremes of the spectrum, abnormal psychology works to define where on the spectrum behavior moves from normal to abnormal. The method used to make such a determination is dependent on five specific criteria. According to Damour and Hansell (2008), these criteria are (a) seek help, (b) irrationality or dangerousness, (c) deviance, (d) emotional distress, and (e) significant impairment (p. 10).
The Roman law did recognize that those who committed acts without malicious intent should not be held accountable for those acts. Under the Lex Cornelia, children, because of the innocence of their intentions, and the insane, because of the nature of their misfortune, were excused from punishment (Platt and Diamond, 1966).The devastating result of the irrational behavior of the insane could be remitted by compensation to the victims paid by the guardian of the insane(Walker 1968). MEDIEVAL PERIOD The Code of Justinian, or the Corpus Iuris Civilis5 (distinguishing it from canon or church law), made provision for the insane. Likened to one ‘absent, asleep or even dead’ a person who became insane was protected from loss of property or position but was not considered capable of making a
From this outline psychology could clearly be defined as a science as it involves gaining a deeper understanding of humans within the world. However, there are many factors which need to be taken into account in order to claim psychology as science. Thus, this essay will look at and apply the main attributes that characterise a science to psychology, discussing the arguments for and against psychology being a science in relation to scientific methods and research biases. The scientific method involves experimentation exploring observations for cause and effect relationships. The design of which is so one variable is manipulating another variable primarily by gathering quantitative research.
This essay wishes to explore the difficulties psychologists face in studying consciousness and will explore; the function of consciousness through the research of implicit learning, methodological difficulties in determining whether information can be learned yet not cognitively accessible and finally, and exploration of how neural activity generates phenomenal experience through theory and research into cognitive correlates of consciousness. One of the foremost difficulties for cognitive psychologists is to understand the function of consciousness. To this end theory and research have turned to unconscious processes in order to