abnormal psych ch 03

A set of assumptions and concepts that help scientists explain and interpret observations. Also called a paradigm.

A nerve cell.

The tiny space between the nerve ending of one neuron and the dendrite of another.

A chemical that, released by one neuron, crosses the synaptic space to be received at receptors on the dendrites of neighboring neurons.

A site on a neuron that receives a neurotransmitter.

The chemicals released by endocrine glands into the bloodstream.

A network of particular brain structures that work together, triggering each other into action to produce a distinct kind of behavioral, cognitive, or emotional reaction.

Chromosome segments that control the characteristics and traits we inherit

Drugs that primarily affect the brain and reduce many symptoms of mental dysfunction.

Interventions that directly or indirectly stimulate the brain in order to bring about psychological improvement.

A treatment in which a brain seizure is triggered when an electric current passes through electrodes attached to the patient’s forehead.

Brain surgery for mental disorders.

According to Freud, the psychological force that produces instinctual needs, drives, and impulses.

According to Freud, the psychological force that employs reason and operates in accordance with the reality principle.

According to psychoanalytic theory, strategies developed by the ego to control unacceptable id impulses and to avoid or reduce the anxiety they arouse.

According to Freud, the psychological force that represents a person’s values and ideals.

According to Freud, a condition in which the id, ego, or superego do not mature properly and are frozen at an early stage of development.

The psychodynamic theory that emphasizes the role of the self—our unified personality.

The psychodynamic theory that views the desire for relationships as the key motivating force in human behavior.

A psychodynamic technique in which the patient describes any thought, feeling, or image that comes to mind, even if it seems unimportant.

An unconscious refusal to participate fully in therapy.

According to psychodynamic theorists, the redirection toward the psychotherapist of feelings associated with important figures in a patient’s life, now or in the past.

A series of ideas and images that form during sleep.

The reliving of past repressed feelings in order to settle internal conflicts and overcome problems.

A simple form of learning.

A process of learning by temporal association in which two events that repeatedly occur close together in time become fused in a person’s mind and produce the same response.

A process of learning in which an individual acquires responses by observing and imitating others.

A process of learning in which individuals come to behave in certain ways as a result of experiencing consequences of one kind or another whenever they perform the behavior.

A behavior-focused intervention in which fearful people are repeatedly exposed to the objects or situations they dread.

The humanistic process by which people fulfill their potential for goodness and growth.

The humanistic therapy developed by Carl Rogers in which clinicians try to help clients by conveying acceptance, accurate empathy, and genuineness.

The humanistic therapy developed by Fritz Perls in which clinicians actively move clients toward self-recognition and self-acceptance by using techniques such as role playing and self-discovery exercises.

A therapy that encourages clients to accept responsibility for their lives and to live with greater meaning and value.

A theory that views the family as a system of interacting parts whose interactions exhibit consistent patterns and unstated rules.

A therapy format in which people with similar problems meet together with a therapist to work on those problems.

A group made up of people with similar problems who help and support one another without the direct leadership of a clinician. Also called a self-help group, peer group, or mutual-help group.

A treatment in which a therapist meets with all members of a family and helps them change in therapeutic ways.

A treatment in which the therapist works with two people who share a long-term relationship. Also called marital therapy.

A treatment approach that emphasizes community care.

The view that each culture in a society has particular values, beliefs, and pressures that help account for the behavior and functioning of its members. Also called culturally diverse perspective.

A multicultural framework that examines how each individual’s memberships across multiple cultural groups and social identities combine to shape their particular experiences, opportunities, outlook, and functioning.

Approaches that are designed to help address the unique issues faced by members of cultural minority groups.

Approaches geared to the pressures of being a female or gender minority in society.

A perspective that uses a developmental framework to understand how variables and principles from the various models may collectively account for human functioning.

The principle that a number of different developmental routes can lead to the same psychological disorder.

The principle that persons with similar developmental histories may nevertheless have different clinical outcomes or react to comparable current situations in different ways.