Psychological & Physical Disorders

This area covers the nature, classification, and causes of psychological and physical disorders — psychopathology and abnormal psychology.

Scope

It includes the description and classification of mental disorders, their cognitive, biological, and social causes, and the validity of diagnostic systems.

Sub-topics

• Psychological Disorders
• Affective Disorders
• Schizophrenia & Psychotic States
• Anxiety Disorders
• Personality Disorders
• Behavior Disorders & Antisocial Behavior
• Substance Abuse & Addiction
• Criminal Behavior & Juvenile Delinquency
• Neurodevelopmental & Autism Spectrum Disorders
• Learning Disorders
• Intellectual Developmental Disorders
• Eating Disorders
• Communication Disorders
• Environmental Toxins & Health
• Physical & Somatic Disorders
• Immunological Disorders
• Cancer
• Cardiovascular Disorders
• Neurological Disorders & Brain Damage

Core questions

• What distinguishes normal from abnormal behaviour?
• How should mental disorders be classified?
• What causes psychopathology?
• How valid are psychiatric diagnoses?

Key concepts

• Psychopathology
• Diagnosis and classification
• Cognitive model of depression
• Labelling
• Diathesis-stress
• Comorbidity

Key theories

Cognitive model of depression

Beck argued that negative cognitive patterns underlie depression, founding cognitive therapy.

The validity of diagnosis

Rosenhan's controversial study questioned the reliability of psychiatric diagnosis and the effects of labelling.

History

Abnormal psychology developed from descriptive psychiatry and psychoanalysis to cognitive (Beck) and biological models, amid ongoing debate—sharpened by Rosenhan—over the validity and reliability of diagnostic classification (DSM).

Debates

How valid are psychiatric categories?

Whether diagnostic systems carve nature at its joints or reflect social and professional construction.

Key figures

• Aaron Beck
• David Rosenhan

Seminal works

• beck-1967
• rosenhan-1973

Frequently asked questions

What is psychopathology?

The study of mental disorders — their symptoms, classification, and causes.