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Home : Other Subjects : Psychology Study Guides : 101 : Psychological Disorders : What Is a Psychological Disorder?
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What Is a Psychological Disorder?
Several criteria exist for defining a psychological disorder. Sometimes a
person needs to meet only one criterion to be diagnosed as having a psychological
disorder. In other cases, more than one of the following criteria may be met:
- Violation of cultural standards behavior
- Exhibition of behavior harmful to self or others
- Experiencing distress
Model of Psychological Disorders
Psychologists use different conceptual models for understanding,
describing, and treating psychological disorders.
The Medical Model
The medical model is a way of describing and
explaining psychological disorders as if they are diseases. Many terms
used to discuss psychological disorders come from the medical model.
Diagnosis refers to the process of distinguishing among
disorders. Etiology refers to the cause or origin of a
disorder. Prognosis refers to a prediction about the
probable course and outcome of a disorder.
Critics argue that this model is not suitable for describing
psychological problems. They say that psychological problems are not
illnesses but rather behaviors and experiences that are morally or
socially deviant.
The Vulnerability-Stress Model
The vulnerability-stress model states that psychological
disorders result from an interaction between biological and environmental
factors. According to this model, individuals who have a biological
vulnerability to a particular disorder will have the disorder only if
certain environmental stressors are present.
The Learning Model
The learning model theorizes that psychological disorders
result from the reinforcement of abnormal behavior.
The Psychodynamic Model
The psychodynamic model states that psychological
disorders result from maladaptive defenses against unconscious
conflicts.
Disorder Assessment
Psychologists use two methods to assess a psychological disorder:
objective testing and projective testing. Objective tests are
usually pencil-and-paper standardized tests such as the Minnesota
Multiphasic Personality Inventory
(MMPI). Projective tests require psychologists to make
judgments based on a subject’s responses to ambiguous stimuli. Word association
tests or the Rorschach test, in which subjects interpret a series
of inkblots, are examples of projective tests. (See pages 285–287 for more
information on these tests.)
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