Lecture 1
Psychopathology = Refers to intense, frequent, and/or persistent maladaptive patterns of emotion,
cognition, and behaviour (P&T)
Developmental Psychology = These maladaptive patterns occur in the context of typical development
and result in the current and potential impairment of infants, children, and adolescents (P&T)
1. from normal to abnormal
How to define normal (typical) versus abnormal (atypical)?
1. Normal as absence of disorders
● Normal: positive quality of life; function well in different contexts; free of disabling
symptoms of psychopathology
● Abnormal: negative quality of life; function poorly; symptoms that form a recognizable
pattern (syndrome) of psychopathology, fitting a clinical classification
● Mental health perspective (P&T)
2. Normal as statistical average
● Normal: behaviour that occurs in the majority of the
population
● Abnormal: behaviour that occurs in a minority of
the population
● Statistical deviance (P&T)
3. Normal as an ideal or desired state
● Normal: meeting social-cultural standards of
healthy psychological development
○ Can be age-related, gender-specific, or culture-relevant expectations
● Abnormal: not meeting those standards
● Sociocultural norms (P&T)
4. Normal as successful ‘adaptation’
● Adaptation: ability of a person to adapt to his or her environment
● Normal: successful adaptation (adequate or optimal); one can deal effectively and flexibly
with various possibilities and difficulties that arise in everyday life
● Abnormal: poor adaptation
Prevalence = proportion of a population with a disorder (number off current cases)
Incidence = the rate at which new cases arise (all new cases in a given time period)
,Disclaimer
- In some situations, clear distinction between normal and abnormal
- Usually large grey area: depending on observer, instrument and situation
- Knowledge of normal development required
Stigma
● Is composed of stereotypes, prejudice and discrimination.
● Multiple levels: public, personal and self stigma (or internalised stigma)
● Can be harmful, and may prevent seeking help
Do we reach all children that need help?
- Of children with problems, only 20% receives formal guidance and 35% support through
informal services (teacher etc.), Zwaanswijk Others (2006)
- Negative impact is greatest when problems remain untreated for a long time
- Approximately 20% of children with severe or chronic disorders
- will experience lifelong difficulties
- are less likely to finish school
- have more social problems and psychiatric disorders
- 80% of children with issues are treatable!
Barriers to mental health care
● Perceptions of mental health and child welfare (e.g., lack of confidence in the system,
previous negative experiences, stigma)
● Perceptions of psychological problems (e.g., denial, beliefs that difficulties resolve over time)
● Structural (e.g., long waiting lists, high personal cost)
2. Theoretical models
Disclaimer:
- Often presented separately, but they are not mutually exclusive
- They usually form complementary perspectives on complex clinical patterns
- Developmental psychopathology is NOT associated with a single point of view or model!!
1. Physiological models
● Physiological (i.e., genetic, structural, biological, or chemical) basis for psychological
processes
● Brain development
○ Pruning: competitive loss of synapses – use it or lose it
○ Fewer, but stronger and faster pathways
○ Experience-dependent plasticity
● Interactions with environment
○ Diathesis (predisposition): physiological vulnerabilities (e.g., genetic)
○ Stress: physiological or environmental
● The interaction may lead to the development of a disorder ( = diathesis-stress model)
○ Gene-by-Environment (G*E) Effects and Interactions
2. Psychodynamic models (WARNING: freud)
● Early psychodynamic models were scientifically dubious…
● Contemporary psychodynamic models focus on:
, ○ Unconscious processes
○ Mental representations of self, other and relationships
○ Subjective experiences
○ Origins of (a)typical personality in early childhood (developmental challenges)
3. Behavioural and cognitive models
● Behavioural models: environment has powerful effects on development of personality and
psychopathology
○ A(typical) behaviours are acquired via learning processes (e.g. reinforcement)
● Cognitive models: focus on processes of the mind and cognitive development (e.g. stages
Piaget, Vygotsky)
○ Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT): manage problems by changing the way
someone thinks and behaves
4. Humanistic models
● Emphasises personally meaningful experiences, innate motivations for healthy growth, and
the child’s purposeful creation of self (e.g. Maslow’s Needs)
● Contrasts with psychodynamic models (conscious versus unconscious, positive versus
negative human traits)
● Psychopathology: interference/suppression of these needs
● “Meeste mensen deugen idee”
5. Family or systemic models
● Understanding of personality and psychopathology of the child based on family dynamics
○ Topics: family type, parenting styles, parent-child relationship, sibling relationship
○ Shared and nonshared (unique) surroundings of siblings
● Diagnostics and therapy focus on the child within the family setting
6. Sociocultural models
● Culture is not only the background for development; rather, it is a major influence on
development itself
○ Examples: gender, ethnicity and socioeconomic status
● Settings of ecological models include home, classroom, neighbourhood (embedded in meso,
exo, macro and chrono* systems) → BRONFENBRENNER’s ecological theory
● * birth cohort (share key experiences and events)
3. Practices and principles
1. Developmental pathways
● Adjustment and maladjustment are points or places along a lifelong map
● Some pathways are associated with psychopathology with high probability, others with low
probability
Metaphor
● Roadblocks: events or responses that shut down or slow down positive trajectories (e.g.,
restricted access to high-quality education, adolescent pregnancy)
● Detours: events or junctures that redirect pathways (e.g., a new school, a change in family
structure)
