Archive for the ‘psychopathology’ Category
Humanistic models partly developed as a reaction against what appeared to be the determinism implicit in psychoanalysis and behaviourism. In psychoanalysis, especially if understood from a Freudian perspective before object relations theory, there was a rather pessimistic view of human nature that portrayed people as basically driven by sexual and aggressive impulses that have to be contained. Behaviourism was also seen as objectifying and dehumanizing, emphasizing environmental forces as determinants of behaviour. In contrast, the humanistic approach was to emphasize human nature as essentially positive, valued choice, values and purpose in life; and psychopathology is seen as the failure to fulfil the natural potential for personal growth. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: actualizing tendency, bio medical model of psychopathology, Carl Rogers, Freudian perspective, manifestations of psychopathology, Object relations theory, person centred therapist, person-centred therapy, pessimistic view of human nature, practical therapeutic strategies, psychoanalysis and behaviourism, Rogers’ person-centred therapy
Cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) may be described as an umbrella model encompassing different aspects of both the cognitive and behavioural models. The underlying assumption is that changing relevant thoughts, beliefs and faulty learning patterns leads to an improvement in mood. It is an action-oriented therapy that assumes that thinking patterns cause maladaptive behaviour and ‘negative’ emotions. Maladaptive behaviour is behaviour that is counter-productive, or interferes with everyday living. CBT claims that changing the way a person thinks and behaves can have a profound effect on their emotional state. The goal of therapy is of promoting change by helping alleviate symptoms of psychopathology and by addressing a myriad of psychosocial behavioural issues. One of the first CBT techniques was self instructional training developed by Donald Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Cognitive schemas, cognitive-behavioural model psychologists, Cognitive-behavioural therapy, insomnia, irrational cognitions, Mental Disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorders, sleep problems, suffering from psychosis, treating panic disorders
It is debatable whether there is much connection between cognitive therapy and cognitive science, which is the experimental study of inner events and mental processes such as reasoning and memory in psychology. Likewise it does not have much connection with the cognitive philosophies such as phenomenology and existentialism. Rather it has been associated with the reaction against psychoanalysis, and with a pragmatic adaptation of behaviour therapy after the decline of strict behaviourism in the 1970s. Neither Beck nor Ellis, the clinical founders of cognitive therapy, drew upon cognitivism when developing their ‘cognitive therapy’. There have been some attempts to make post hoc connections between recent academic psychology and therapeutic practice, and some cognitivists (Guidano 1987) have attempted to integrate social constructivist and systemic approaches Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Anorexia nervosa, anti-theoretical stance, cognitive therapy, cognitivism, Obsessive-compulsive disorder, social constructivist, Suicidal behaviour, synthesis of internal and external stimuli, therapeutic practice
Social learning theorists point out that although the environment influences our behaviour, through our behaviour we can also influence the environment, and argue that although environmentalism may explain the behaviour of pigeons and laboratory rats, it cannot adequately explain the complexity of human behaviour and the factors that differentiate the human species from other less complex species. They emphasize that a number of factors combine in shaping the social behaviour and the mental state of the individual, and that such factors mediate the influence of learning experiences. One of the most influential social learning theorists was Albert Bandura, who carried out work on modelling in the learning process. This involves learning behaviour through watching others, that is, learning by imitation (Bandura and Walters 1963; Bandura 1969). Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Behavioural psychotherapy, Cognitive determinants, cognitive-behavioural model, Criticisms of the behavioural model, environmentalism, humanistic models, learning theorists, Social learning theorists
Just as the psychoanalytic perspective developed partly through
dissatisfaction with the narrowness of a biological model of
psychopathology, the behavioural model developed partly because
psychologists found the psychoanalytic model unscientific and ineffective.
The behaviour model is constructed on the work of learning
theorists. Behaviourists thought that the same behaviours that Freud
studied could be explainable in a simpler fashion, in ways that would
make them experimentally testable within a scientific framework.
Although both the psychoanalytical and the behavioural models
are deterministic they locate the source of determinism in a different
place. Whereas Freud located the source of human conduct in intrapsychic
events, learning theorists view behaviour as a product of
stimulus-response (S-R) relationships. Hence, in this model there is no
need to explore the past or to understand the reasons for present
behaviour in order to bring about change. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: aetiology of psychopathology, behaviour therapy for phobias, Classical conditioning, Edward Thorndike, emotional reactions, learning theorists, Negative reinforcement, operant conditioning, Pavlov, suppressing behaviour, temper tantrum
Behavioural psychology is nearly as contemporaneous as psychoanalysis as a psychological discipline although it developed later as a form of therapy. Behaviourism, like all models developed within a wider social and academic context. Both the psychoanalytical and behavioural models have in different ways been influenced in their formation and development by their relationship with the medical model. Regarding their considerations of psychopathology, the psychoanalytical and behavioural model are similar in that both consider concepts of normality as well as abnormality and share many diagnostic terms, although using different causal frameworks. The dominant models of psychopathology until the First World War were based on the predominant philosophical considerations of the time which were those of evolutionary biology. The primary model of mental health was the biological model of bio-determinism which viewed mental disorder as well as any other form of deviance as resulting from some inherited weakness, or because of bad genes rather than because of any environmental or Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: academic psychology, behavioural models, Behavioural psychology, bio determinist, clinical psychology, cognitive models, Galtonian tradition, psychoanalytical models, psychotherapies, Radical Behaviourism
Bowlby formulated a model of development with clearly articulated implications for psychopathology. In his 1973 volume, he highlights how threats to the availability of attachment figures, together with defensive processes and distorted communication within the parent–child relationship, can result in symptomatic expressions of fear, anger and sadness. From infancy specific emotions accompany an individual’s appraisal of the availability of an attachment figure. These emotions normally serve important motivational, selfmonitoring and communication functions for the individual (Bowlby 1969/1982). He also illustrates (1973) how attachment processes contribute to childhood anxiety disorders and phobias. Anxiety can be considered the fundamental condition underlying insecure attachment. He distinguishes between ‘true phobias’ (in which a child is afraid of something in the environment, such as spiders or snakes) and ‘pseudo-phobias’ (such as school refusal or agoraphobia). Bowlby suggests, that unlike true phobias, these may be better understood as resulting from the absence or feared loss of an attachment figure. Thus fear and worry about the availability of the attachment figure may result in a child’s staying home to monitor the parent closely. He nevertheless leaves open the possibility that phobias may develop through conditioning and avoidance learning. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: antisocial behaviours, Anxiety Disorders, dissociative symptoms, Fear and anger, intense anger, stressful separations, traditionally opposing models
One of the most influential developments based on the psychoanalytical model is attachment theory, based on the work of John Bowlby (1958, 1969/1982, 1973, 1980). Like psychoanalysts generally (Erikson 1963; Freud 1965; Winnicott 1965; Mahler, Pine and Bergman 1975), Bowlby emphasizes the importance of early relationships, in particular the way the child forms attachments. These early attachments shape experiences in later life, and can result in the development of different forms of psychopathology. Central to Bowlby’s theory is the significance of the mother (caretaker) child relationship and biological bases of attachment behaviour (1969). Most theories of child development, psychoanalytical, cognitive and behavioural-social learning approaches, emphasize the influence social relationships in childhood have on mental health and illness. However, it was not until Bowlby’s work that the association between early child attachment relationships and the development of various forms of psychological disorders was highlighted. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: adult psychopathology, Bowlby’s approach, cognitive science, control systems theory, developmental psychology, ethnology, evolutionary biology, psychoanalytical and social learning models, psychological disorders
Freud’s work took place at a particular contextual time and place – the sexually repressive context of nineteenth-century middle-class Vienna. His views were seen as radical at the time, as they challenged the prevailing assumptions about the nature of personality and psychological suffering. His ideas have become part of Western cultural heritage. However, Freud’s theories have been criticized widely, the most frequent being that they are not scientific (Eysenck and Wilson 1973, Steele 1982 and Sutherland 1998). Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: person-centred therapy, psychodynamic approaches, psychodynamic model, psychodynamic model theories therapies, psychogenesis of different states of mind, scientific hypotheses
Ego psychology introduced a significant departure from traditional psychoanalysis, since it represents a shift in focus from the id to the ego. One of its best-known proponents is Erikson. Whereas Freud outlined stages of psychosexual development, Erikson offers a psychosocial stage theory that emphasizes social tasks and associated conflicts throughout the lifespan (Erikson 1963). Each of Erikson’s stages is dependent on the development of the preceding stage and the unfolding of each stage is based on two underlying basic assumptions. First, the steps are predetermined, so that the individual is ready to be motivated towards growth and development and prepared to interact with a widening social radius. Second, society tends to be constituted so as to encourage and safeguard the proper rate and sequence of the stages. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Erik Erikson biography, Erik Erikson life, industry versus inferiority, Object relations theory, Psychoanalysis and the wider dimension, psychopathology of the transitional states, self psychology, traditional psychoanalysis, traditions of interpersonal psychoanalysis