PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDER

PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDER is a physical condition in which there is a disturbance of normal functioning relating to, or arising in mind.

The study of maladjusted human being ( the one who has lost his subjective well being, have disturbed social relations, evaluation of reality is altered, can not use his capacities well) shows that he is not a different kind of human being; only that he seeks same goals, and pleasure but in a wrong direction or in an inefficient manner.

Before moving on with what all comes under psychological disorder and its causes, we also need to know about the concept of adjustment and stress, and some of the concept of adjustment and stress, and some popular misconception about abnormal behavior.

The abnormal behavior has different views, approaches, and categories. These are:
Two Basic Views for abnormal behavior -
1. abnormal as deviation from social norms
2. abnormal as maladaptive
Three broader categories for classification
1. Organic brain disorder
2. Disorder of psychological or socio cultural origin
3. Mental Retardation
Three basic approaches
1. Categorical approach
2. Dimensional approach
3. Prototypal approach

The concept of adjustment: Adjustment is, in a way ‘ solution of problems’. And it is important to remember that human beings recruit all his capacities and summons up all his abilities in the attempt to solve these problems as successfully as possible.
What we say and feel and think is determined by our “internal world” as well as by “external world”, and in neurotic (Characteristic of or affected by a mental or personality disturbance not attributable to any known neurological or organic dysfunction) and psychotics (Characteristic of or suffering from any severe mental disorder in which contact with reality is lost or highly distorted) perhaps even more by the former than by later.
And if we hold such a point of view, the hallucinations ( Illusory perception; a common symptom of severe mental disorder), delusions (an erroneous belief that is held in the face of evidence to the contrary), phobias (An anxiety disorder characterized by extreme and irrational fear of simple things or social situations), and worries and uncertainties of maladjustment, all immediately becomes ” Logical” attempts to achieve the same happiness and attain the same goal that other ‘more’ normal’ people already have.

Stress: Ours is an age of tremendous growth of knowledge and rapid social change. But our life is not so comfortable, despite most modern sources of comfort as compared to our fore fathers who were far happier even with their sparse and limited means of income.
Unfortunately, advances in our understanding of human nature and behavior have lagged far behind our advance in physical and biological sciences.
We see people anxious, unhappy, and bewildered; and the stress of modern life is clear in the sales of tranquilizers, alcohol, sleeping pills, and in increased heart attacks, suicide rates and crime rates.
The stress is the response of an individual to demands that he or she perceives as taxing and exceeding his or her personal resources.

Some popular misconceptions about abnormal behavior -
1. The belief that abnormal behavior is bizarre (only a small percentage of patients inhibit the bizarre behavior and not all mental patients)
2. The view that “normal” and “abnormal” behavior differs. (We’ll see that usually only the difference in the degree or frequency of ‘normal behavior’ leads to abnormal behavior.)
3. The view or former/belonging to some prior time as unstable a dangerous. (Mental disorder can be cured, and person does recover from it. Only less than 1% of all patients released from the mental hospitals can be regarded dangerous.)
4. The belief that mental disorder is something to be ashamed of.
5. An exaggerated fear of one’s own susceptibility to mental disorder. (Fears of possible mental disorder are quite common and cause much needless unhappiness. In this connection, it should be perhaps being mentioned that medical students, in reading various physical disorders, are likely to imagine that they have many of the symptoms described, the same reaction is likely among those reading about mental disorders.)

The Cause/ causal factors in psychopathology:
The causation of any particular behavior pattern is tremendously complex. There have been differing viewpoints and models to the explanation of causes for maladaptive behavior.
The three broad factors are -
1. BIOLOGICAL FACTORS for Psychological Disorder
– Genetic factors
– Constitutional liabilities
– Physical deprivation
– Disruptive emotional process
– Brain pathology
– Neurotransmitter and Hormonal imbalance
2. PSYCHOSOCIAL FACTORS
– Maternal deprivation
– Pathogenic family pattern
– Early psychic trauma
– Pathogenic interpersonal relationships
– Severe stress
3. SOCIO CULTURAL FACTORS
– War and violence
– Group prejudice and discrimination
– Economic and employment problems
– Accelerating technological and social change

DSM – IV
The standard abnormal psychology and psychiatry reference book in North America is the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric Association. The current version of the book is known as DSM IV-TR. The diagnostic process uses five dimensions called ‘axes’ to ascertain symptoms and overall functioning of the individual. These axes are as follows
Axis I – Particular clinical syndromes
Axis II – Permanent Problems (Personality Disorders, Mental Retardation)
Axis III – General medical conditions
Axis IV – Psychosocial/environmental problems
Axis V – Global assessment of functioning (often referred to as GAF)

ICD -10
The major international nosologic system for the classification of mental disorders can be found in the most recent version of the International Classification of Diseases, 10th revision (ICD-10). The ICD-10 has been used by World Health Organization (WHO) Member States since 1994. Chapter five covers some 300 “Mental and behavioral disorders.” The ICD-10’s chapter five has been influenced by APA’s DSM-IV and there is a great deal of concordance between the two. WHO maintains free access to the ICD-10 Online. Below are the main categories of disorders:
F00-F09 Organic, including symptomatic, mental disorder
F10-F19 Mental and behavioral disorders due to psychoactive substance use
F20-F29 Schizophrenia, schizotypal and delusional disorder
F30-F39 Mood [affective] disorders
F40-F48 Neurotic, stress-related and somatoform disorder
F50-F59 Behavioral syndromes associated with physiological disturbances and physical factors
F60-F69 Disorders of adult personality and behavior
F70-F79 Mental retardation
F80-F89 Disorders of psychological development
F90-F98 Behavioral and emotional disorder with onset usually occurring in childhood and adolescence
F99 Unspecified mental disorder

PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDERS stated under DSM Codes -
1) Mental retardation
2) Learning Disorders
3) Motor Skills Disorders
4) Communication Disorders
5) Pervasive Developmental Disorders
6) Attention-Deficit and Disruptive Behavior Disorders
7) Feeding and Eating Disorders of Infancy or Early Childhood
Tic Disorders
9) Elimination Disorders
10) Other Disorders of Infancy, Childhood, or Adolescence
11) Delirium, Dementia, and Amnestic and Other Cognitive Disorders
11.1 Delirium
11.2 Dementia
11.3 Amnestic Disorders
11.4 Other Cognitive Disorders
12) Mental Disorders Due to a General Medical Condition Not Elsewhere Classified
13) Substance-Related Disorders
13.1 Alcohol-Related Disorders
13.2 Amphetamine (Or Amphetamine-Like) Related Disorders
13.3 Caffeine-Related Disorders
13.4 Cannabis-Related Disorders
13.5 Cocaine-Related Disorders
13.6 Hallucinogen-Related Disorders
13.7 Inhalant-Related Disorders
13.8 Nicotine-Related Disorders
13.9 Opioid-Related Disorders
13.10 Phencyclidine (Or Phencyclidine-Like)-Related Disorders
13.11 Sedative-, Hypnotic-, or Anxiolytic-Related Disorders
13.12 Polysubstance-Related Disorder
13.13 Other (or Unknown) Substance-Related Disorder
14) Schizophrenia and Other Psychotic Disorders
15) Mood Disorders
15.1 Depressive Disorders
15.2 Bipolar Disorders
16) Anxiety Disorders
17) Somatoform Disorders
18) Factitious Disorders
19) Dissociative Disorders
20) Sexual and Gender Identity Disorder
20.1 Sexual Dysfunctions
20.2 Paraphilias
20.3 Gender Identity Disorders
21) Eating Disorders
22) Sleep Disorders
22.1 Primary Sleep Disorders
22.2 Parasomnias
22.3 Other Sleep Disorders
23) Impulse-Control Disorders Not Elsewhere Classified
24) Adjustment Disorders
25) Personality Disorders

An example of “How each disorder is further classified” -
Schizophrenia and Other Psychotic Disorders
Schizophrenia
– 295.2 Catatonic Type
– 295.1 Disorganized Type
– 295.3 Paranoid Type
– 295.6 Residual Type
– 295.9 Undifferentiated Type
295.4 Schizophreniform Disorder
295.7 Schizoaffective Disorder
297.1 Delusional Disorder
298.8 Brief Psychotic Disorder
297.3 Shared Psychotic Disorder
Psychotic Disorder Due to… [Indicate the General Medical Condition]
– 293.81 with Delusions
– 293.82 with Hallucinations
298.9 Psychotic disorder NOS

” Abnormal behavior is a crucial social problems, involving not only the maladaptive behavior of individuals and families but also of larger group including entire society, it is also clear that such behavior is often the result of interaction between individual or groups and aversive environment.”

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