Abnormal Psychology: An In-depth Examination

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In this paper, we will be examining the differences between what is normal and abnormal psychological thinking, various disorders and treatment methods for the various disorders with a focus on therapeutic treatments. The idea of understanding first what is the difference in the psychological thinking of an individual who suffers from a mental illness or disorder tends to be in the comprehension of what is normal and what abnormal behavior is. Mental illness and mental disorders tend to be synonymous with each other in their usage; many do not fully comprehend the difference between a disorder and an illness. Therefore, to begin this paper we will define the difference, before looking at any other aspect so that we may understand the different usage of these words. “When you are mad, mad like this, you don't know it. Reality is what you see. When what you see shifts, departing from anyone else's reality, it's still reality to you.” (Hornbacher, n.d.) An illness is defined by Merriam-Webster dictionary as, “a condition of being unhealthy in your body or mind or a specific condition that prevents your body or mind from working normally: a sickness or disease” (2014). When we look at our understanding of a disorder, we find that the dictionary tends to define this as, something that disturbs the normal order of processing (2014). Hence, we might conclude that a disorder is something that disturbs the normal order of your mind being able to process the information that it is receiving whereas a mental illness is something that actively prevents your mind from working normally. As we look at the various conditions within axis one and two, we find that we tend to see things that are on axis one tend to disrupt the normal order ... ... middle of paper ... ...iley & Sons Inc. Kurzweil, S. (2012). Psychodynamic Therapy for Depression in Women with Infants and Young Children. American Journal of Psychotherapy, 2(66), 181-199. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1285125572?accountid=458 Lieb, K., Zanarini, M. C., Schmahl, C., Linehan, M. M., & Bohus, M. (2004). Borderline Personality Disorder. The Lancet, 364(9432), 453-461. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/199002969?accountid=458 Merriam-Webster Incorporated. (2014). Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. (M.-W. Incorporated, Producer) Retrieved from Merriam-Webster: http://www.merriam-webster.com/ Walton, K., Roberts, B., Krueger, R., Blonigen, D., & Hicks, B. (2005). Capturing Abnormal Personality With Normal Personality Inventories: An Item Response Theory Approach. Journal of Personality, 6(76), 1623-1648. doi:10.1111/j.1467-6494.2008.00533.x

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