26. Summarize the difference between a non-directive and directive therapy and explain why Rogers' approach is non-directive.
During non-directive therapy a therapist analyzes and individual without judgement, but stays away from directing the individual with how to proceed with their problems. Directive therapy is the opposite of non-directive. During directive therapy, a therapist listens closely to what an individual has to say, then responds to them with how to proceed with their problems and what steps to take to help solve them. Rogers' approach is a non-directive therapy. In Rogers' approach, the therapist listens to the individual, without judgement, but refrains from directing the individual toward particular insights.
At the time Carl Rogers was starting to put together a non-directve therapeutic approach, many therapists were seen as a doctor giving expert advice to a patient. Rogers' approach, however, asked that people rely less on judgments and opinions of others and view themselves as the best experts on what they should be doing to solve problems. Rogers' believed that people were their own best experts, with some helpful advice along the way. People are not expected to completely self reliant right away, but through the therapeutic relationship, people feel that they are valued, listened to, and understood. Through time, they learn to think about, reflect upon, and seek new solutions to their problems. This process is non-directive therapy. The therapist is always alongside the client, whether it's a step ahead or behind. They client always chooses the direction they would like to go, with the therapist always there to discuss where to go next
This article explains Rogers' client centered therapy. This particular type of therapy has is a non-directive talk therapy. This form of therapy is one of the most widely used approaches today. Rogers' believed that it was important be as non-directive as possible, but that it was still important to be to guide clients in subtle ways. Rogers' also felt is was an important aspect of referring to people as clients, rather than patients. The title of patient was seen as a person being sick, and seeking medical attention. Client, on the other hand, is a person seeking assistance to help overcome a problem and controlling their own way of life.
27. Describe the attitude of the client-centered therapist (congruence, empathy, and unconditional positive regard).
Client-centered therapy is when therapists use active listening within a genuine, accepting, empathetic environment to promote a client's individual growth. The three core conditions of client-centered therapy are conference, empathy, and unconditional positive regard. Congruence is genuineness, therapists allow client's to experience them as they really are. The therapist does not put up a blank screen or facade of themselves, they are authentic to the client. Empathy is the ability of the therapist to put themselves in the client's shoes and understand what they are feeling. Being a client-center therapist means that it is important to go along with what the client is feeling and let the client understand that it is okay to feel they way they do. Unconditional positive regard is the belief that for people to grow and reach their full potential, they must value themselves.
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This graphs describes the aspects of client-centered therapy. The three core conditions of empathy, positive regard, and genuineness, or congruence, all work together to create a good client to therapist relationship. The therapist is genuine to the client. The therapist provides the client with an unconditional positive regard. The therapist shows a feeling of empathy towards the client. In the middle of the graphic are the five different phases of the model.
In client-centered therapy, the client is responsible for changing his or her own life, not the therapist. The therapist is there as a guide to listen to and encourage the client. The client must decide for themselves what is wrong and what must be done about it. Client-centered therapy is operated under three core principles that best benefit the client and therapist: congruence, unconditional positive regard, and empathy
28. Distinguish between various definitional and theoretical models of abnormal behavior.
Abnormal psychology is the study of unusual or out of the norm thoughts, feelings, or behaviors. These behaviors may be socially unacceptable, distressing, self defeating, or the effects of askew thoughts. There are many causes or reasons why abnormal behavior takes place. The various definitional and theoretical models of abnormal behavior include the medical perspective, the psychodynamic perspective, the behavioral perspective, the cognitive perspective, and the social-cultural perspective. The medical perspective focuses mainly on biological and physiological causes of abnormal behavior. In this perspective, disorders are recognized through symptoms and treated as disease or sickness. In many cases, hospitalization and drugs are the source of treatment. The psychodynamic perspective are ofttimes the alternative answers to the medical perspective. The perspective views disorders as psychological issues produced from unresolved anxiety and unconscious conflicts with oneself or others.
This article explains that abnormal psychology studies a broad range of disorders, such as depression and sexual deviation. The important thing to remember when it comes to the term "abnormal" and "normal" is that these terms do not necessarily mean good or bad. This means focusing on the amount of distress and disruption that afflicting behavior may cause. When the behavior gets t the stage of being disruptive or causes a problem in an individuals life, it is then considered to be abnormal.
This article focuses on the perspectives of abnormal behavior. In the filed of abnormal behavior people's emotional, cognitive, and behavioral issues are studied and addressed. The perspectives of abnormal behavior include the following: the medical perspective, the psychodynamic perspective, the behavioral perspective, the cognitive perspective, and the social-cultural perspective.
29. Describe the diagnostic techniques used by psychologists.
To diagnose mental disorders and conditions psychiatrists use the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, with an updated text revision. This manual is also known as the DSM-IV-TR and has an upcoming new addition called the DSM-5. This manual defines diagnostic process and sixteen clinical syndromes. It presumes explanations of causes and describes disorders. Chances are, if one psychologist diagnoses someone of having a disorder, another mental health clinician will independantly give the same diagnosis. Clinicians follow specific guidelines and answer a series of objective questions about observable behaviors. From the series of questions, clinician may select none, one, or more syndromes. Most clinicians find that the DSM-IV-TR is very practical and helpful tool. Not only is this manual important is the eyes of psychologists, it is also financially necessary. Most North American health insurance companies require an ICD/DSM diagnosis before they cover a client's therapy and treatment.
The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder was published by the American Psychiatric Association. This manual covers all known mental health disorders and syndromes for children and adults. All known causes of disorders, statistics in terms of gender, ago of onset, prognosis, and research concerning optimal treatment approaches are listed. This manual helps to better understand disorders and potential treatment options for the patient. The manual uses multiaxial or multidimensional approaches to diagnoses, because factors in a patient's life rarely affect their mental health and wellbeing. Five dimensions are assesd including the following: Axis I: Clinical Syndromes, Axis II: Developmental Disorders and Personality Disorders, Axis III: Physical Conditions, Axis IV: Severity of Psychosocial Stressors, and Axis V: Highest Level of Functioning.
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This chart shows changes that were made from the DSM-IV to the new DSM-5. Social Communication Disorder was not included in the DSM-IV, but was added to the DSM-5. Rett Disorder was removed form the manual, and is not included in the DSM-5. Mixed Receptive-Expressive and Learning Disorder, was also removed from the DSM-5. The title of Mental Retardation was changed to Intellectual Disability. The title Reading Disorder was changed to Dyslexia and Mathematics Disorder to Dyscalculia. Phonological Disorder was switched to the tittle of Speech and Sound Disorder and Stuttering to Childhood-Onset Fluency Disorder.
30. Describe the symptoms and possible causes for the following disorders: phobic disorders, generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, somatoform disorders, dissociative disorders, schizophrenic disorders, and mood disorders.
- Phobic Disorders occur when an irrational fear causes an individual to avoid an object, activity or situation. With phobic disorders come large amounts of anxiety and stress. Many phobic disturbances begin with crying, tantrums, freezing, or clinging. Most adults are able to recognize that they have excessive and unreasonable behavior occurring and seek help for their "fear," unlike children.
- Generalized Anxiety Disorder is chronic and exaggerated worry or tension, even when nothing seems to provoke or cause it. This type of anxiety is more than the normal day to day anxiety people experience. This disorder includes individuals constantly anticipating a disaster, excessively worrying about health, money, family, or work. Although, sometimes the exact source of the disorder is hard to pinpoint.
- Panic Disorders are the cause of panic attacks, when an intense period of fear or discomfort it felt. These attacks strike suddenly and in familiar places. There is nothing threatening to the individual in these places, but in the onset of the attack it seems as if there is a legitimate threat to the person and their body progresses accordingly. Heart palpitations, shortness of breath, choking sensations, trembling, or dizziness are often associated with these attacks.
- Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, or OCD, is unreasonable thoughts and fears or obsessions that lead to repetitive behaviors or compulsions. Sometimes a person may only have obsessions, or only compulsions. The person suffering form OCD may or may not notice that their obsessions or compulsions aren't reasonable. They may try to ignore or stop them. This act of trying to "stop" behavior only increases the amount of stress or anxiety felt. Obsessive-Compulsive Disoder occurs in themes. For example, the fear of getting contaminated by germs.
- Somatoform Disorders are disorders with no specific cause. Symptoms of this disorder come in various forms, with no exact medical reasoning. An example would be physical pain. Since pain can be the cause of several things, an exact determination would be award to determine. People suffering form this disorder are oftentimes frustrated, with the frustration only increasing. These individuals feel as if no one is paying attention or listening to them, and are unable to make a correct diagnosis of their problem.
- Dissociative Disorders are when an individual tries to escape reality in ways that are not volunteer and unhealthy. People with this disorder experience disconnection and absence of persistence between thoughts, memories, surrounding, actions, and identity. Symptoms of this disorder develop as a result of trauma and help keep memories in the back of ones mind. When times become stressful symptoms worsen and Dissociative Disorder may become and everyday problem. Signs and symptoms of the disorder may include the following: memory loss of specific time periods of events and people, mantel health problems such as depression and anxiety, a sense of being detached from oneself, a perception of the people and things around oneself as distorted and unreal, a blurred sense of identity, and large amounts of stress or issues with relationships.
- Schizophrenic Disorder is a group of severe disorders recognized by disorganized and delusional thought processes, disturbed perceptions, and inappropriate emotions or behaviors. With this disorder, individuals suffer from a combination of symptoms such as hallucinations or delusions and mood disorder symptoms, such as mania or depression.
- Mood disorders are psychological disorders portrayed by emotional extremes. The general state of mind or mood becomes distorted or inconsistent with circumstances during this disorder. Many mood disorders are characterized by the following symptoms: depressed mood most of the day, markedly diminished interest or pleasure in activities, weight loss or gain when not dieting, significant decrease or increase in appetite, insomnia or sleeping too much, physical agitation or lethargy, fatigue or loss of energy on a daily basis, a feeling of worthlessness or excessive guilt, daily issues with thinking, concentrating, or making decisions, and reoccurring thoughts of death and suicide.
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This video describes Schizophrenia. The extreme of the condition depends on the individual and their list of symptoms. They may be sever enough to alter their everyday life, or very minor. Some people let their disorder take over their lives, while others are very high achieving individuals that manage their disorder responsibly.
This article explains that psychological disorders are mental disorders with patterns of psychological symptoms that impact life in many ways. The list of disorders given can cause large amounts of stress for the individuals experiencing them.