8.2 Psychological Perspectives and Etiology of Disorders
4 min read•december 23, 2022
Emily Pedrazzi
Dalia Savy
Sadiyya Holsey
Haseung Jun
Emily Pedrazzi
Dalia Savy
Sadiyya Holsey
Haseung Jun
is the cause(s) of a . Each psychological approach has a different view on the causes of each disorder.
Review of each Approach
| Approach | Definition | Key Figures | Disorders |
| Behavioral 📖 | Studies the connection between our minds and behavior. | , | Could explain learned phobias. Think about the Little Albert study 🐀 |
| Biological 🧬 | States that behavior is based on physical processes such as those relating to the brain, hormones, and other chemicals. | Paul Broca, Carl Wernicke, | Disorders are a result of a misbalance in the brain 🧠, whether it be with neurotransmitters or hormones. |
| Biopsychosocial | Acknowledges the person as a whole and tries to look at all of the patient's circumstances. It looks at biological, psychological, and social factors to understand a person’s behavior. | Disorders are as a result of genetic predispositions, a misbalance in the brain, maladaptive thoughts, and culture. | |
| Cognitive 🧠 | States that thought processes impact the way people behave. A cognitive psychologist may study how an emotion such as fear affects one’s thinking. | , | Disorders are a result of maladaptive thoughts |
| Evolutionary ❤️ | Uses evolutionary biology to explain human behavior. Also, it looks at how natural selection of traits promotes the survival of genes. An evolutionary psychologist may study how anger could be a gene inherited from our ancestors. | Anxiety helped us survive, therefore we have it. It was part of natural selection. | |
| Humanistic 🔺 | believes that humans have free will and the ability to grow 🌱 All individuals are striving to reach self actualization with this approach. | , | Anxiety disorders are as a result of not having the environment to grow (not having an unconditional positive regard) and therefore being unable to reach self-actualization. |
| Psychodynamic 🙊 | Focuses on the study of the unconscious mind. It states that behavior is determined by past experiences stored in the unconscious mind. | , , | Could explain that anxiety disorders are a result of unconscious thoughts from childhood or the instability of the ego and not being able to balance between the id and superego. |
| Sociocultural 🗣️ | Studies how thinking and behavior vary across cultures and situations. A sociocultural psychologist may study how expressions of fear vary across cultures. | , | Anxiety occurs as a result of norms that exist within a culture. |
Strengths and Weaknesses
Strengths | Weaknesses | |
Behavioral 📖 | Uses theories of conditioning which have been proven to help in rewiring behavior. | Has little to no focus on biological aspects. |
Biological 🧬 | Experiments are objective, providing concrete data. | Has little to no focus on environment, upbringing, etc. |
Biopsychosocial | Provides a more complete picture by using three different approaches. | Relationship between each section may be difficult to understand. |
Cognitive 🧠 | Used to successfully rewire thoughts in clinical settings. | Extremely logical and rarely accounts for emotional responses. |
Evolutionary ❤️ | Can compare humans throughout different evolutionary stages. | More effectively used on animals than humans. |
Humanistic 🔺 | Methods are adaptable to various types of people. | Little objectivity is used. |
Psychodynamic 🙊 | Uses concepts from both nature and nurture arguments. | Theories cannot be proven. |
Sociocultural 🗣️ | Observations are most commonly made in real-world situations. | Variables are challenging to control. |
Effects of Labeling
The purpose of is to categorize/classify mental illnesses within an easily identifiable set of parameters. However, unexpected negative consequences may occur, such as increased stigma and discrimination toward certain groups.
The is a famous 1973 experiment that analyzed labeling by sending mentally healthy subjects to psychiatric hospitals by feigning hallucinations. They faked the disorder to get into the hospitals, but once they were in, they acted normal.
Despite the eventual fading of any symptoms, patients were still seen as correctly diagnosed. Stigma was proven to be driven by the diagnosis, leading to an inaccurate portrayal of circumstances.
7 people were diagnosed with and 1 with , which shows that they didn't know how to differentiate normal behavior from symptoms of mental illnesses.
This is yet again another example of an unethical experiment that happened. By being brought into a psychiatric hospital, subjects were prone to being treated differently, sometimes searched randomly, and had no privacy.
Rosenhan concluded that labels do matter and could have "a life and an influence of its own." They change one's perception and reality.
Image Courtesy of Psychology Wizard.
However, there is still a long debate about the over-diagnosis and labels. As all things do, , which are made to do no harm, has its positive and negative consequences.
first help doctors and the patient get empowered with knowledge. If they know exactly what to expect, it's a little easier to find treatment. It's also a good way for communication 🗣 and enhances treatment access 💊.
But unfortunately, it can have some negative consequences. People may start seeing the diagnosis and not the person, and this can lead to . It can also mislead the doctors and patients from understanding the cause, leading to treatment involving only prescribed medication (which can have bad side effects).
Like everything in this world, there are positive and negative consequences, so it's important to weigh the pros and cons and make the right decision in diagnosing
Key Terms to Review (31)
Abraham Maslow
: Abraham Maslow was an American psychologist best known for creating Maslow's hierarchy of needs—a theory of psychological health predicated on fulfilling innate human needs in priority, culminating in self-actualization.Albert Bandura
: Albert Bandura is a renowned psychologist known for his social learning theory, which emphasizes the importance of observational learning, imitation, and modeling.B.F. Skinner
: B.F. Skinner was a psychologist who developed the theory of operant conditioning, which posits that behavior is determined by its consequences, be they reinforcements or punishments.Behavioral Approach
: The behavioral approach in psychology focuses on observable behaviors rather than internal events like thinking and emotion. It suggests that all behaviors are learned through interaction with our environment.Biopsychosocial Approach
: An integrated approach that incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural levels of analysis for understanding human behavior or health issues.Bipolar Disorder
: Bipolar disorder is a mental health condition marked by extreme mood swings from high (mania) to low (depression).Carl Jung
: Carl Jung was a Swiss psychiatrist and psychoanalyst who founded analytical psychology. He proposed concepts like collective unconscious, archetypes, and introverted/extroverted personality types.Carl Rogers
: An influential American psychologist who developed client-centered therapy (also known as Rogerian therapy) which emphasizes unconditional positive regard and self-acceptance.Charles Darwin
: A British naturalist who revolutionized biology with his theory of evolution through natural selection; he proposed that species evolve over time by adapting to their environments.Cognitive Approach
: The cognitive approach in psychology is a way of understanding human behavior that focuses on how we think. It suggests that our thought processes affect the way we behave.Diagnostic Labels
: Diagnostic labels are terms used by professionals to identify and categorize mental health conditions based on symptoms observed or reported.Effects of Labeling
: The effects of labeling refer to how categorizing or naming someone can influence both how others perceive them and their own self-perception.Erik Erikson
: Erik Erikson was a German-American developmental psychologist known for his theory on psychosocial development of human beings. He emphasized the social nature of our development rather than focusing solely on the psychosexual aspects.Etiology
: Etiology refers to the study of causes or origins. In psychology, it's used to understand the root cause of a particular behavior, mental disorder, or disease.Evolutionary Approach
: The evolutionary approach in psychology applies principles of evolution, including natural selection and survival of the fittest, to explain psychological processes and phenomena.Humanistic Approach
: This is a psychological perspective that emphasizes the study of the whole person and believes individuals have free will. It focuses on human potential and encourages self-exploration rather than studying behavior in response to a stimulus.Ivan Pavlov
: Ivan Pavlov was a Russian physiologist known for his work in classical conditioning, where he trained dogs to salivate at the sound of a bell by associating it with food.Jean Piaget
: Jean Piaget was a Swiss psychologist known for his work on child development. He proposed the theory of cognitive development, which explains how a child constructs a mental model of the world.Little Albert Study
: The Little Albert Study was a famous experiment conducted by John B. Watson and Rosalie Rayner, demonstrating classical conditioning in humans. They conditioned a baby, known as 'Little Albert,' to fear a white rat by pairing it with a loud noise.Modern Psychology
: Modern psychology is a broad field that includes various sub-disciplines such as clinical psychology, cognitive psychology, developmental psychology etc. It uses scientific methods to study and understand human mind and behavior.Psychodynamic Approach
: A view that explains personality in terms of conscious and unconscious forces, such as unconscious desires and beliefs.Psychological Disorder
: A psychological disorder is a condition characterized by abnormal thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. It often causes distress and makes it difficult for individuals to function normally in their daily lives.Roger Sperry
: Roger Sperry was a neuropsychologist and neurobiologist who won a Nobel Prize for his work on split-brain research, demonstrating that the left and right hemispheres have different functions.Rosenhan Study
: The Rosenhan study was an experiment conducted by psychologist David Rosenhan in which healthy individuals pretended to have hallucinations to be admitted into psychiatric hospitals. The study highlighted the potential dangers and inaccuracies of psychiatric diagnoses.Schizophrenia
: Schizophrenia is a severe mental disorder characterized by distortions in thinking, perception, emotions, language, sense of self and behavior.Self-fulfilling Prophecies
: A self-fulfilling prophecy is a prediction that directly or indirectly causes itself to become true due to the positive feedback between belief and behavior.Sigmund Freud
: An Austrian neurologist who founded psychoanalysis. He proposed theories about the role of the unconscious mind, childhood experiences, and sexuality in influencing human behavior and development.Sociocultural Approach
: The sociocultural approach examines how social and cultural environments influence behavior.Solomon Asch
: Solomon Asch was a prominent psychologist best known for his experiments on conformity, where he demonstrated the influence of group pressure on individual behavior.Stanley Milgram
: Stanley Milgram was an American psychologist who conducted controversial experiments on obedience, showing how people will obey authority even when it involves harming others.Strengths and Weaknesses of Approaches
: This refers to the positive aspects (strengths) and limitations (weaknesses) of different psychological approaches or theories.8.2 Psychological Perspectives and Etiology of Disorders
4 min read•december 23, 2022
Emily Pedrazzi
Dalia Savy
Sadiyya Holsey
Haseung Jun
Emily Pedrazzi
Dalia Savy
Sadiyya Holsey
Haseung Jun
is the cause(s) of a . Each psychological approach has a different view on the causes of each disorder.
Review of each Approach
| Approach | Definition | Key Figures | Disorders |
| Behavioral 📖 | Studies the connection between our minds and behavior. | , | Could explain learned phobias. Think about the Little Albert study 🐀 |
| Biological 🧬 | States that behavior is based on physical processes such as those relating to the brain, hormones, and other chemicals. | Paul Broca, Carl Wernicke, | Disorders are a result of a misbalance in the brain 🧠, whether it be with neurotransmitters or hormones. |
| Biopsychosocial | Acknowledges the person as a whole and tries to look at all of the patient's circumstances. It looks at biological, psychological, and social factors to understand a person’s behavior. | Disorders are as a result of genetic predispositions, a misbalance in the brain, maladaptive thoughts, and culture. | |
| Cognitive 🧠 | States that thought processes impact the way people behave. A cognitive psychologist may study how an emotion such as fear affects one’s thinking. | , | Disorders are a result of maladaptive thoughts |
| Evolutionary ❤️ | Uses evolutionary biology to explain human behavior. Also, it looks at how natural selection of traits promotes the survival of genes. An evolutionary psychologist may study how anger could be a gene inherited from our ancestors. | Anxiety helped us survive, therefore we have it. It was part of natural selection. | |
| Humanistic 🔺 | believes that humans have free will and the ability to grow 🌱 All individuals are striving to reach self actualization with this approach. | , | Anxiety disorders are as a result of not having the environment to grow (not having an unconditional positive regard) and therefore being unable to reach self-actualization. |
| Psychodynamic 🙊 | Focuses on the study of the unconscious mind. It states that behavior is determined by past experiences stored in the unconscious mind. | , , | Could explain that anxiety disorders are a result of unconscious thoughts from childhood or the instability of the ego and not being able to balance between the id and superego. |
| Sociocultural 🗣️ | Studies how thinking and behavior vary across cultures and situations. A sociocultural psychologist may study how expressions of fear vary across cultures. | , | Anxiety occurs as a result of norms that exist within a culture. |
Strengths and Weaknesses
Strengths | Weaknesses | |
Behavioral 📖 | Uses theories of conditioning which have been proven to help in rewiring behavior. | Has little to no focus on biological aspects. |
Biological 🧬 | Experiments are objective, providing concrete data. | Has little to no focus on environment, upbringing, etc. |
Biopsychosocial | Provides a more complete picture by using three different approaches. | Relationship between each section may be difficult to understand. |
Cognitive 🧠 | Used to successfully rewire thoughts in clinical settings. | Extremely logical and rarely accounts for emotional responses. |
Evolutionary ❤️ | Can compare humans throughout different evolutionary stages. | More effectively used on animals than humans. |
Humanistic 🔺 | Methods are adaptable to various types of people. | Little objectivity is used. |
Psychodynamic 🙊 | Uses concepts from both nature and nurture arguments. | Theories cannot be proven. |
Sociocultural 🗣️ | Observations are most commonly made in real-world situations. | Variables are challenging to control. |
Effects of Labeling
The purpose of is to categorize/classify mental illnesses within an easily identifiable set of parameters. However, unexpected negative consequences may occur, such as increased stigma and discrimination toward certain groups.
The is a famous 1973 experiment that analyzed labeling by sending mentally healthy subjects to psychiatric hospitals by feigning hallucinations. They faked the disorder to get into the hospitals, but once they were in, they acted normal.
Despite the eventual fading of any symptoms, patients were still seen as correctly diagnosed. Stigma was proven to be driven by the diagnosis, leading to an inaccurate portrayal of circumstances.
7 people were diagnosed with and 1 with , which shows that they didn't know how to differentiate normal behavior from symptoms of mental illnesses.
This is yet again another example of an unethical experiment that happened. By being brought into a psychiatric hospital, subjects were prone to being treated differently, sometimes searched randomly, and had no privacy.
Rosenhan concluded that labels do matter and could have "a life and an influence of its own." They change one's perception and reality.
Image Courtesy of Psychology Wizard.
However, there is still a long debate about the over-diagnosis and labels. As all things do, , which are made to do no harm, has its positive and negative consequences.
first help doctors and the patient get empowered with knowledge. If they know exactly what to expect, it's a little easier to find treatment. It's also a good way for communication 🗣 and enhances treatment access 💊.
But unfortunately, it can have some negative consequences. People may start seeing the diagnosis and not the person, and this can lead to . It can also mislead the doctors and patients from understanding the cause, leading to treatment involving only prescribed medication (which can have bad side effects).
Like everything in this world, there are positive and negative consequences, so it's important to weigh the pros and cons and make the right decision in diagnosing
Key Terms to Review (31)
Abraham Maslow
: Abraham Maslow was an American psychologist best known for creating Maslow's hierarchy of needs—a theory of psychological health predicated on fulfilling innate human needs in priority, culminating in self-actualization.Albert Bandura
: Albert Bandura is a renowned psychologist known for his social learning theory, which emphasizes the importance of observational learning, imitation, and modeling.B.F. Skinner
: B.F. Skinner was a psychologist who developed the theory of operant conditioning, which posits that behavior is determined by its consequences, be they reinforcements or punishments.Behavioral Approach
: The behavioral approach in psychology focuses on observable behaviors rather than internal events like thinking and emotion. It suggests that all behaviors are learned through interaction with our environment.Biopsychosocial Approach
: An integrated approach that incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural levels of analysis for understanding human behavior or health issues.Bipolar Disorder
: Bipolar disorder is a mental health condition marked by extreme mood swings from high (mania) to low (depression).Carl Jung
: Carl Jung was a Swiss psychiatrist and psychoanalyst who founded analytical psychology. He proposed concepts like collective unconscious, archetypes, and introverted/extroverted personality types.Carl Rogers
: An influential American psychologist who developed client-centered therapy (also known as Rogerian therapy) which emphasizes unconditional positive regard and self-acceptance.Charles Darwin
: A British naturalist who revolutionized biology with his theory of evolution through natural selection; he proposed that species evolve over time by adapting to their environments.Cognitive Approach
: The cognitive approach in psychology is a way of understanding human behavior that focuses on how we think. It suggests that our thought processes affect the way we behave.Diagnostic Labels
: Diagnostic labels are terms used by professionals to identify and categorize mental health conditions based on symptoms observed or reported.Effects of Labeling
: The effects of labeling refer to how categorizing or naming someone can influence both how others perceive them and their own self-perception.Erik Erikson
: Erik Erikson was a German-American developmental psychologist known for his theory on psychosocial development of human beings. He emphasized the social nature of our development rather than focusing solely on the psychosexual aspects.Etiology
: Etiology refers to the study of causes or origins. In psychology, it's used to understand the root cause of a particular behavior, mental disorder, or disease.Evolutionary Approach
: The evolutionary approach in psychology applies principles of evolution, including natural selection and survival of the fittest, to explain psychological processes and phenomena.Humanistic Approach
: This is a psychological perspective that emphasizes the study of the whole person and believes individuals have free will. It focuses on human potential and encourages self-exploration rather than studying behavior in response to a stimulus.Ivan Pavlov
: Ivan Pavlov was a Russian physiologist known for his work in classical conditioning, where he trained dogs to salivate at the sound of a bell by associating it with food.Jean Piaget
: Jean Piaget was a Swiss psychologist known for his work on child development. He proposed the theory of cognitive development, which explains how a child constructs a mental model of the world.Little Albert Study
: The Little Albert Study was a famous experiment conducted by John B. Watson and Rosalie Rayner, demonstrating classical conditioning in humans. They conditioned a baby, known as 'Little Albert,' to fear a white rat by pairing it with a loud noise.Modern Psychology
: Modern psychology is a broad field that includes various sub-disciplines such as clinical psychology, cognitive psychology, developmental psychology etc. It uses scientific methods to study and understand human mind and behavior.Psychodynamic Approach
: A view that explains personality in terms of conscious and unconscious forces, such as unconscious desires and beliefs.Psychological Disorder
: A psychological disorder is a condition characterized by abnormal thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. It often causes distress and makes it difficult for individuals to function normally in their daily lives.Roger Sperry
: Roger Sperry was a neuropsychologist and neurobiologist who won a Nobel Prize for his work on split-brain research, demonstrating that the left and right hemispheres have different functions.Rosenhan Study
: The Rosenhan study was an experiment conducted by psychologist David Rosenhan in which healthy individuals pretended to have hallucinations to be admitted into psychiatric hospitals. The study highlighted the potential dangers and inaccuracies of psychiatric diagnoses.Schizophrenia
: Schizophrenia is a severe mental disorder characterized by distortions in thinking, perception, emotions, language, sense of self and behavior.Self-fulfilling Prophecies
: A self-fulfilling prophecy is a prediction that directly or indirectly causes itself to become true due to the positive feedback between belief and behavior.Sigmund Freud
: An Austrian neurologist who founded psychoanalysis. He proposed theories about the role of the unconscious mind, childhood experiences, and sexuality in influencing human behavior and development.Sociocultural Approach
: The sociocultural approach examines how social and cultural environments influence behavior.Solomon Asch
: Solomon Asch was a prominent psychologist best known for his experiments on conformity, where he demonstrated the influence of group pressure on individual behavior.Stanley Milgram
: Stanley Milgram was an American psychologist who conducted controversial experiments on obedience, showing how people will obey authority even when it involves harming others.Strengths and Weaknesses of Approaches
: This refers to the positive aspects (strengths) and limitations (weaknesses) of different psychological approaches or theories.
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