Mood and Related Disorders
Learning Objectives By the end of this section, you will be able to: Blake cries all day and feeling that he is worthless and his life is hopeless, he cannot get out of bed. Crystal stays up all night, talks…
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
Learning Objectives By the end of this section, you will be able to: Extremely stressful or traumatic events, such as combat, natural disasters, and crimes, place the people who experience them at an increased risk for developing psychological disorders such…
Obsessive-Compulsive and Related Disorders
Learning Objectives By the end of this section, you will be able to: Obsessive-compulsive and related disorders are a group of overlapping disorders that generally involve intrusive, unpleasant thoughts and repetitive behaviors. Many of us experience unwanted thoughts from time to…
Anxiety Disorders
Learning Objectives By the end of this section, you will be able to: Everybody experiences anxiety from time to time. Although anxiety is closely related to fear, the two states possess important differences. Fear involves an instantaneous reaction to an…
Perspectives on Psychological Disorders
Learning Objectives By the end of this section, you will be able to: Scientists, mental health professionals, and cultural healers may adopt different perspectives in attempting to understand or explain the underlying mechanisms that contribute to the development of a…
Diagnosing and Classifying Psychological Disorders
Learning Objectives By the end of this section, you will be able to: A first step in the study of psychological disorders is carefully and systematically discerning significant signs and symptoms. How do mental health professionals ascertain whether or not…
What Are Psychological Disorders?
Learning Objectives By the end of this section, you will be able to: According to the American Psychiatric Association, a psychological disorder, or mental disorder, is “a syndrome characterized by clinically significant disturbance in an individual’s cognition, emotion regulation, or behavior…
Introduction
Figure 15.1 A wreath is laid in memoriam to victims of the Washington Navy Yard shooting. (credit: modification of work by D. Myles Cullen, US Department of Defense) Chapter Outline 15.1 What Are Psychological Disorders? 15.2 Diagnosing and Classifying Psychological Disorders 15.3 Perspectives on Psychological…
The Pursuit of Happiness
Learning Objectives By the end of this section, you will be able to: Although the study of stress and how it affects us physically and psychologically is fascinating, it is—admittedly—somewhat of a grim topic. Psychology is also interested in the study of…
Regulation of Stress
Learning Objectives By the end of this section, you will be able to: As we learned in the previous section, stress—especially if it is chronic—takes a toll on our bodies and can have enormously negative health implications. When we experience events…