Whats the Difference?
What’s the difference between positive and negative symptoms of schizophrenia? Give one example of each.
Positive: added behaviors like hallucinations or delusions.
Negative: reduced behaviors like flat affect or lack of speech.
- Positive = excess of normal functions (too much dopamine).
Negative = lack of normal functions (too little dopamine).
How long must symptoms last for Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) to be diagnosed?
6 months — Persistent, excessive worry for most days over six months. This helps distinguish normal stress from a clinical disorder.
Antimanic:
1.) Treatment Area
2.) Two examples
1.) Mood-stabilizing & Manic behavior
2.) Lithium, anticonvulsant drugs
Which neurotransmitter is linked to schizophrenia?
Dopamine — Too much dopamine activity causes hallucinations and delusions (positive symptoms).
Thus, drugs used to treat schizophrenia aim to inhibit dopamine
Cluster A involves disorders defined as ______ and includes what 3 disorders?
- Odd or Eccentric types
Paranoid, Schizoid, Schizoidtypcal
Identify and explain the three major eating disorders recognized in the DSM-5.
Anorexia: restriction of food → dangerously low weight
Bulimia: binge + purge behaviors
Binge-eating: recurrent binges without purging behaviors
To diagnose Major Depressive Disorder, symptoms must last for at least how long?
2 weeks — Continuous low mood or loss of interest for 2+ weeks is the diagnostic threshold.
Minor Tranquilizers:
1.) Drug Type
2.) Treatment Area
3.) Two examples
1.) Antianxiety
2.) Symptoms of anxiety and
phobic reactions
3.) Alprazolam (Xanax), lorazepam, diazepam
Low levels of serotonin are linked to what mood disorder?
Depression — Serotonin helps regulate mood, sleep, and appetite; low levels lead to sadness and fatigue.
- Thus, SSRIs work by keeping serotonin active longer so the brain can use it more effectively.
Cluster B involves disorders defined as ______ and includes what 4 disorders?
- Dramatic or Erratic Types
Antisocial, Borderline, Histionic, Narcissistic
Dissociative Amnesia vs Dissociative Fugue
Dissociative amnesia: Loss of memory for personal information
Dissociative fugue: Traveling from familiar surroundings with amnesia about the trip and possible
amnesia for personal information
- key difference: Traveling
Mania episodes in Bipolar I last at least how many days?
7 days (or hospitalization) — Mania is severe, often impairing functioning or leading to hospitalization.
MAOIs (monoamineoxydase inhibiters):
1.) Drug Type
2.) Treatment Area
3.) Two examples
1.) Antidepressants
2.) Depression & anxiety
3.) iproniazid, isocarboxazid, phenelzine sulfite, tranylcypromine sulfate
- Remember MAOI’s have a lot of dietary restrictions
Excessive norepinephrine is often linked to which type of disorder?
Manic or anxiety disorders — High arousal and energy levels are connected to norepinephrine spikes.
Cluster C involves disorders defined as ______ and includes what 3 disorders?
- Anxious or Fearful Types
Avoident, Dependent, Obsessive-cumpulsive
Explain 3 of the following Cognitive Distortions:
Arbitrary inference, Selective thinking, Overgeneralization, Magnification, Minimization, Personalization, All-or-none
• Arbitrary inference: drawing a conclusion without any evidence
• Selective thinking: focusing on only one aspect of a situation while ignoring all other relevant aspects
• Overgeneralization: drawing sweeping conclusions based on only one incident or event and applying those conclusions to events that are unrelated to the original
• Magnification: blowing a negative event out of proportion
• minimization: while ignoring relevant positive events
• Personalization: taking responsibility or blame for events that are unconnected to the person
• Dichotomous Thinking (all-or-none) – thinking that anything less than perfection is a failure
Hypomania episodes last for how many days?
4 days — Shorter and less severe than mania; does not require hospitalization. (Bipolar II)
Tricyclics:
1.) Drug Type
2.) Treatment Area
3.) Two examples
1.) Antidepressants
2.) Depression & anxiety
3.) imipramine, desipramine,
amitriptyline, doxepin
Low GABA activity is associated with what?
Anxiety disorders — GABA is inhibitory; low levels mean the brain is overactive and anxious.
According to Aaron Beck, what are the three parts of the Cognitive Triad in depression?
Negative thoughts about the self, the world, and the future
- Beck believed depression stems from persistent negative thought patterns that distort reality and fuel hopelessness.
According to the sociocultural perspective, what causes abnormal behavior, and how do cultural relativity and culture-bound syndromes help explain differences across cultures? Give one example from Eastern and Western societies.
🧠 Sociocultural Perspective: Abnormal behavior results from family, social, and cultural influences — not just individual factors.
🌏 Cultural Relativity: Reminds us to evaluate behavior within the norms of a person’s culture instead of applying one universal standard.
💬 Culture-Bound Syndromes: Disorders found only in specific cultures.
Example (Eastern): Koro – found in parts of China and Southeast Asia; the belief that one’s genitals are retracting into the body and may cause death.
Example (Western): Eating Disorders like anorexia nervosa, tied to cultural pressures for thinness and appearance.
How long must someone show signs of schizophrenia (active phase + total duration) to be diagnosed?
6 months total, with 1 month active symptoms — Long duration ensures it’s not a brief psychotic episode.
SSRIs:
1.) Drug Type
2.) Treatment Area
3.) Two examples
1.) Antidepressants
2.) Depression & anxiety [effective for long-term levels of anxiety (ex. GAD)]
3.) Fluoxetine (Prozac), Sertraline (Zoloft), Lexapro (escitalopram), etc
Low levels of stress hormones (like cortisol) are often found in which personality disorder?
Antisocial Personality Disorder (APD) — Low stress response contributes to fearlessness and lack of empathy.
What are the Four D’s of Abnormality?
Deviance – Unusual or violates norms
Distress – Causes emotional suffering
Dysfunction – Interferes with daily life
Danger – Risk to self or others