Study Notes

Psychopathology Key Term Glossary

Level:
AS, A-Level
Board:
AQA, Edexcel, OCR, IB

Last updated 22 Mar 2021

This glossary supports students looking at Psychopathology for their A Level Psychology exams.

As you study Psychopathology don't forget to also make full use of our Psychopathology study notes study notes and Psychopathology revision quizzes revision quizzes.

ABC model



Ellis's explanation for how irrational thoughts affect behaviour A= activating event, B+ beliefs, C= consequences



Agoraphobia



Irrational fear of being outside or in a public place



Avoidance



The act of staying away from something (e.g. the phobic object or situation)



Basal ganglia



Region of the brain involved in the coordination of movement that has been linked to OCD



Benzodiazepines



Antianxiety drugs used to treat OCD as they have a quietening effect on the brain and reduce anxiety causes by obsessive thoughts



Bipolar depression



Condition where a person has periods of elevated mood (mania) as well as periods of depression



Catastrophising



Cognitive error where you exaggerate a minor setback and turn it into a major disaster



CBT



Cognitive Behavioural Therapy is a commonly used therapy which involves challenging and replacing irrational thoughts



Cognitive bias



Error in thinking caused by simplified information processing



Compulsion



An irresistible urge to behave in a certain way



COMT gene



Gene which has a variation which results in higher levels of dopamine and this variation is more common in patients with OCD



Counter-conditioning



Learning a new response to the phobic object/situation e.g. replacing fear with relaxation



Cultural relativism



The idea that cultural norms and values are culture specific and no-one culture is superior to another culture



Deviation from ideal mental health



Not meeting criteria which suggest you are mentally healthy



Deviation from social norms



A behaviour that deviates from social norms is one that is very different from how we would expect people to behave



Dopamine



Higher levels of this neurotransmitter have been associated with the compulsions shown by OCD patients



DSM-V



Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition is the standard classification of mental disorders used in the United States.



Empirical dispute



REBT technique where the therapist seeks evidence for a person's thoughts



Failure to function adequately



When a person's behaviour means they are unable to cope with the demands of everyday life



Fear hierarchy



A list of situations related to the phobic object/situation arranged in order from least to most frightening



Flooding (in-vitro)



Behavioural treatment for a phobia which involves imagined exposure to the phobic object/situation without being able to escape



Flooding (in-vivo)



Behavioural treatment for a phobia which involves actual exposure to the phobic object/situation without being able to escape



Hindsight bias



The way that social norms change over time



ICD 10



The 10th revision of the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, produced by the World Health Organisation



Logical dispute



REBT Technique where the therapies disputes the logic of a person's thoughts



Negative self-schemas



Negative information we hold about ourselves based on negative past experiences that can lead to cognitive biases



Negative triad



Three types of negative thinking (self, the world and the future) that Beck suggested occur automatically in people who are depressed



Obsession



An idea or thought that continually preoccupies or intrudes on a person's mind.



Orbifrontal cortex



A region of the brain which converts sensory information into thoughts and actions- higher activity has been found here in OCD patients



Overgeneralisation



Cognitive error where you make a sweeping conclusion from a single incident



REBT



Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy is a type of CBT based on Ellis's ABC model



Selective attention



Focusing on one piece of information while ignoring other information viewed as irrelevant



Serotonin



Neurotransmitter which regulates mood - lower levels are associated with OCD



SERT gene



gene which affects the transport of serotonin, causing lower levels of serotonin which is associated with OCD



Simple or specific phobia



Irrational fear of an object (e.g. spiders) or situation (e.g. flying)



Social norm



The rules of behavior that are considered acceptable in a group or society



Social phobia



Irrational fear of a social situation (e.g. speaking in public)



SSRIs



Antidepressant drugs used to treat OCD which work by preventing the re-absorption and breakdown of serotonin



Statistical infrequency



A behaviour that is statistically infrequent does not happen very often



Systematic desensitisation



A behaviour therapy designed to gradually reduce a phobia through the principle of classical conditioning



Two-process model



Behavioural explanation for phobias which suggests they are acquired through classical conditioning and maintained through operant conditioning



Unipolar depression



A major depressive episode that occurs without the manic phase

© 2002-2024 Tutor2u Limited. Company Reg no: 04489574. VAT reg no 816865400.