Summary
Summary AQA A Level Psychopathology Year 1 Example Essay Plans
Essay plans for AQA A Level Psychology, Psychopathology. Will help students achieve high levels following the plan, particularly with the PEE(L) structure for AO3.
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1. Definitions of abnormality 1AO1:
- Statistical infrequency: when an individual has a less common characteristic; more
depressed or intelligent than the rest of the population. Is used when looking at
behaviours that are measurable, e.g. intelligence. Most people will cluster around
average (normal distribution) and going above or below this will show less people at
this score. Average IQ is 100, 68% of the population will fall around this at 85-115.
2% score below 70, and they are seen to be ‘abnormal’ and may receive diagnosis of
intellectual disability disorder. (IDD)
- AO3: STRENGTH: P: usefulness in real world application. E: statistical infrequency
can be used in clinical settings as part of formal diagnosis to assess symptoms. E.g.
diagnosing intellectual disability uses the IQ average to determine the bottom 2%.
Assessment tool - Beck Depression inventory (BDI). Score of 30+ (top 5%) indicates
severe depression. E: useful in diagnosis and assessment processes.
- LIMITATION: P: infrequency can be positive, not just negative. Being unusual at one
of the spectrum does not cause concern like high IQ or low depression score. Does
not make someone unusual to be statistically infrequent. E: although useful in
diagnosis and assessment, it is not sufficient enough to be the sole reason for
definition of abnormality.
AO1:
- Deviation from social norms: concerns behaviour that is different from accepted
standards of behaviour within community or society. Norms differ from generations
and cultures, but some are universally abnormal. Homosexuality was abnormal until
recent changes in culture and legal systems, but in some it remains abnormal. E.G.
Someone with antisocial personality disorder is impulsive, aggressive etc. according
to DSM-5 a key symptom of the disorder is prosocial standards with failure to
conform to lawful and culturally normative behaviour. Someone could be diagnosed
for simply not conforming to moral standards.
- AO3: STRENGTH: P: real world application. E: used in clinical practice. Defining
characteristics of antisocial personality disorder is failure to conform to culturally
normal ethical behaviour. Behaviour is recklessness, aggression, violating rights of
others etc. Signs of these behaviours are deviating from social norms. E: deviating
from social norms has value in psychology.
- LIMITATION: variation of norms between different cultures and social situations. E:
those from one cultural group may label others as abnormal due to using their own
standards rather than the other persons. E.g. Hearing voices may be normal as a
sign of speaking to one’s ancestors in one culture, but may be seen as abnormal in
the UK. Situational norms; aggression and deceit in family situations may be normal
but would be abnormal in a business deal setting. E: difficult to judge and clarify
social norms across cultures and situations.
2. Definitions of abnormality 2
AO1:
- Failure to function adequately: occurs when someone is unable to cope with
demands of daily living such as hygiene, nutrition or maintaining relationships around
them.
- Rosenhan and Seligman (1989): signs to see when someone is not coping; no longer
conforming to interpersonal rules (eye contact, personal space etc), experiencing
, severe distress and irrational or dangerous behaviour to themselves and those
around them.
- Example: criteria for IDD is not just low IQ, also looks at failure to function adequately
before diagnosing.
AO3:
- STRENGTH: P: represents threshold for professional help. E: most people have
symptoms of mental disorder at some point of their life. Charity Mind said that 25% of
people in the UK will face a mental health problem at some point. Failure to function
adequately usually only happens at a severe point where they are referred to get
help. E: treatment/services can be targeted at those who need it.
- LIMITATION: P: easy to label non-standard lifestyle as abnormal through
discrimination and social control. E: someone who has chosen to deviate from a
normal lifestyle could be seen as failing to function. ‘Alternative lifestyles’ tend to live
off grid. Enjoying high risk activities/unusual practices = seen as unreasonable,
irrational, danger to self/others. E: those who make unusual choices are seen as
abnormal, freedom of choice can be restricted.
AO1:
- Deviation from ideal mental health: occurs when someone does not meet a set of
criteria for good mental health.
- Jahoda (1958): no symptoms or stress, rational, self-actualisation, coping with stress,
realisticness of the world, good self-esteem, independent, successful work, love and
enjoyment of leisure.
- Maybe some overlap of deviation from ideal mental health and failure to function
adequately. E.g inability to keep a job can be a deviation from successfully working
etc.
AO3:
- STRENGTH: P: comprehensive definition. E: includes a range of criteria for
distinguishing ideal mental health from illness; covers most reasons for referral,
different healthcare professionals can target the range of criteria with different
theoretical views e.g. humanistic counsellor focusing on self-actualization. E:
checklist against which self-assessment can take place, and psychological issues
can be discussed with a range of professionals.
- LIMITATION: P: culture bound, cannot be applied to a range of cultures. E: Jahoda’s
criteria is based on the context of USA and Western European norms. Variation of
success in terms of working, social and love lifes, variation on value placed on
personal independence. E: difficult to apply the concept of ideal mental health across
cultures.
3. Phobias
AO1:
- Phobias: an irrational fear of an object or situation.
- DSM-5: specific phobia: phobia of an object or situation. Social anxiety (social
phobia): phobia of a social situation such as public speaking or using a public toilet.
Agoraphobia: phobia of being outside or in a public place.
- Behavioural: ways in which people act.
- Panic: may respond to the presence of phobia stimulus with behaviours such as
crying, screaming, running away. Children may react with freezing, clinging, throwing
tantrums.
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