Module 48: Introduction to Psychological Disorders
Defining Psychological Disorders
Understanding Psychological Disorders
Classifying Disorders—and Labeling People
Risk of Harm to Self and Others
Rates of Psychological Disorders
Module 49: Anxiety Disorders, Obsessive-Compulsive and Related Disorders, Trauma- and Stressor-Related Disorders, and Somatic Symptom and Related Disorders
Anxiety Disorders
Obsessive-Compulsive and Related Disorders
Trauma- and Stressor-Related Disorders
Somatic Symptom and Related Disorders
Understanding Anxiety Disorders, Obsessive
Compulsive and Related Disorders, Trauma- and
Stressor-Related Disorders, and Somatic Symptom and Related Disorders
Module 50: Depressive Disorders and Bipolar Disorders
Depressive Disorders
Bipolar Disorders
Understanding Depressive Disorders and Bipolar
Disorders
Module 51: Schizophrenia
Symptoms of Schizophrenia
Onset and Development of Schizophrenia
Understanding Schizophrenia
Module 52: Dissociative, Personality, and Eating
Disorders
Dissociative Disorders
Personality Disorders
Eating Disorders
Module 53: Neurodevelopmental Disorders
Intellectual Developmental Disorder
Autism Spectrum Disorder
Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
THINKING CRITICALLY ABOUT:
Energy or Disordered Behavior?
CHAPTER 16: Therapy (Modules 54–56)
ADHD—Natural High
Module 54: Introduction to Therapy and the Psychological Therapies
Treating Psychological Disorders
Psychoanalysis and Psychodynamic Therapies
Humanistic Therapies
Behavior Therapies
Cognitive Therapies
Group Therapy, Couples Therapy, and Family Therapy
Module 55: Evaluating Psychotherapies
Is Psychotherapy Effective?
Which Psychotherapies Work Best?
How Do Psychotherapies Help People?
Human Diversity and Psychotherapy
Seeking Psychotherapy
Ethical Principles in Psychotherapy
Module 56: The Biomedical Therapies and Preventing
Psychological Disorders
THINKING CRITICALLY ABOUT:
Therapeutic Lifestyle
Change
Drug Therapies
Brain Stimulation
Psychosurgery
Preventing Psychological Disorders and Building
Resilience
Appendix A: The Story of Psychology: A Timeline
Appendix B: Career Fields in Psychology
Appendix C: Psychology at Work
Appendix D: Complete Module Reviews
Retrieval Practice
Appendix E: Answers to the
Questions
Glossary
References
Name Index
Subject Index
Chapter 1 Thinking Critically With Psychological Science (Modules 1–3)
Astronomer Owen Gingerich has described the human brain as “by far the most complex physical object known to us in the entire cosmos” (2006, p. 29). On the scale of outer space, we are less than a single grain of sand on all the oceans’ beaches, and our lifetime lasts but a relative nanosecond. Yet there is nothing more awe inspiring than our own inner space. Our consciousness—our mind somehow arising from matter— remains a profound mystery. Our thinking, emotions, and actions (and their interplay with others’ thinking, emotions, and actions) fascinate us. Outer space staggers us with its enormity. But inner space enthralls us. Enter psychological science. From news and media portrayals, you might think that psychologists offer counseling, analyze personality, dispense child-raising advice, examine crime scenes,
and testify in court. Do they? Yes—and much more. Consider some of psychology’s questions that you may wonder about: Have you ever worried about how to act among people of a different cultural tradition, gender identity, or sexual orientation, or among people with differing abilities? How are we alike as members of the human family? How do we differ? Have you ever vowed to never react as one of your biological parents would—but find yourself doing so anyway—and then wondered how much of your personality you inherited? To what extent do genes predispose our individual differences in personality? How do home and community environments shape us? Have you ever awakened from a nightmare and wondered why you had such a crazy dream? Why do we dream? Why is sleep so important? Have you ever played peekaboo with a 6-month-old and wondered why the baby finds your disappearing/reappearing act so delightful? What do babies perceive and think? Have you ever wondered what fosters school and work success? Does inborn intelligence explain why some people get richer, think more creatively, or relate more
sensitively? Or does gritty effort, and a belief in the power of persistence, matter more? Have you ever become depressed or anxious and wondered when, or if, it will pass? What affects our emotional well-being? What’s the line between feeling “off” and a psychological disorder? As we will see in Modules 1 and 2, psychology is a science that seeks to answer such questions about us all—how and why we think, feel, and act as we do.
