Essay about Psychological Disorders Psychological Disorders Essay Psychological Disorders Essay

1. Essay about Psychological Disorders
Psychological Disorders' Presentation
"Psychological disorders are behaviors or mental processes that are connected with various kinds of
distress or impaired functioning (Nevid & Rathus, 2005)." Many people battle different kinds of
disorders ranging from anxiety, dissociative, somatoform, moodiness, schizophrenia, personality, and
many other disorders (Nevid & Rathus, 2005). Some are so mild that people do not recognize
when they have it, and some are so severe that they become a nuisance to the community. A
disorder is simply an abnormal way of acting toward something. Psychologists have a reference
guide called the DSM IV, which is the updated version of the DSM (Nevid & Rathus, 2005). A
detailed guide that helps...show more content...
Psychodynamic theorists believe that conversions occur as a result of bad thoughts to do
something harmful to someone including their self. The body creates its own symptoms and
mental blocks to keep from doing something irrational (Nevid & Rathus, 2005). They
subconsciously learn to act a certain way in the presence of their fear or anxiety (Nevid &
Rathus, 2005). Cognitive theorists think that hypochondrias over amplify the significance of
unimportant events or objects (Nevid & Rathus, 2005). Mood disorders are rigorous
annoyance of one's mood. It is common to experience moodiness, but it is not normal to be in a
bad or depressed disposition (Nevid & Rathus, 2005). Major depression and bipolar disorder
are two main contributions to moodiness within one's self. "As a result of the major depression
disorder may be in a bad or depressed mood, change in appetite, problems sleeping, and/or loss of
interest for anything pleasurable(Nevid & Rathus, 2005)." Women are more likely to endure
depression than men are due to the lack of equality within the community and the extra burdens
such as taking care of children and working (Nevid & Rathus, 2005). A bipolar disorder
consists of someone being able to go from extreme happiness to extreme depression in a split second
(Nevid & Rathus, 2005). People
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2. Psychological Disorders Essay
There are multiple criteria that come into play when determining a psychological disorder. One
reason is because, it is hard to know for sure if an action is abnormal or not. Something could be
abnormal in our country, but a custom in another. According to Psychology in Action, "[r]ather than
being fixed categories, both "abnormal" and "normal" behaviors exist along a continuum, and no
single criterion is adequate for [i]dentifying all forms of abnormal behavior" (Huffman). There are
four criteria used to determine whether behavior is abnormal. These are known as the four D's. The
first is deviance, this means that someones thoughts are different than those in the their culture and
/or society. The second is dysfunction, this is when a...show more content...
But when the acquisition of and inability to discard worthless items becomes extreme, it can
interfere with basic aspects of living, such as cleaning, cooking, sleeping on a bed, and moving
around one's home. This abnormal behavior is associated with several psychological disorders,
but it is most commonly found in people who have obsessive compulsive disorder, or OCD . . .
(Ch. 14). In the middle ages they had no way to explain this behavior. They believed the only
diagnosis was evil spirits and/ or witchcraft. They tried trephining, which was drilling holes into
the skull in order to let the evil spirits out. They also performed exorcisms, fasting, noise making,
beating, and nasty brews in order to help these people. Later on they started thinking that these
people chose to affiliate with the devil. They believed that were witches and they would either
torchure them, imprison them for life, or they would be executed. A very well known case of this
happening is the Salem Witch Trials. Three young girls began acting out. According to the article
The Mystery of the Salem Witch Trials, "Their strange behaviors included hallucinations, shouting
out in church, having fits, making strange sounds, and feeling as if they were being pricked and
poked" (Annika). The only diagnosis the doctor could come up with, was that the girls have been
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3. Psychological Disorders Essay
There are times when people are plagued with thoughts, behaviors or emotions that will inhibit
them from normal behavior. These are known as psychological disorders. These disorders come in
many forms but all will have large effects on a person's life.
One of the types of psychological disorders is anxiety disorders. These disorders are broken down
into five categories: generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, phobia, obsessive–compulsive
disorder (OCD), and Post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). All of these categories describe
disorders in which a person displays extreme fear or nervousness. People will become afraid of
objects, social situations, animals, reliving traumatic events, or many other things. People suffering
from...show more content...
It is one extreme to the other leaving the person very unstable. Depression can give people a sense of
hopelessness that can lead to them hurting themselves or others.
"A personality disorder is a long–standing, inflexible, maladaptive pattern of perceiving, thinking, or
behaving." (Gerrig, Zimbardo, 2008, 470). One type of personality disorder is borderline personality
disorder when a person is very instable and frequently lashes out in anger. The person will be very
impulsive and are prone to self–destructive behavior. Another is antisocial personality disorder in
which a person is frequently displaying unlawful behavior such as stealing or causing fights.
When a person has complaints about physical illnesses that cannot be explained medically and
these claims lead to interference in their lives it is known as a somatoform disorder.
Hypochondriacs fall into this category of disorders. People may also actually experience loss of
motor or sensory functions that cannot be explained any damage or problems with their bodies. A
dissociative disorder is involved more in the disturbance of identity or memory. People will
sometimes forget traumatic events in their lives or forget who they are. Other cases involve the
development of multiple personalities where a person assumes the identity of more than one person
which are unaware of the other identities. This type of dissociative disorder is often
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