按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页，按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页，按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部！
————未阅读完？加入书签已便下次继续阅读！
a time。
Hughes’s mishaps as a pilot and driver caused three deaths。 On several occasions Hughes suffered
serious head； face； and； perhaps； brain injuries； one near…fatal plane crash resulted in what became
a lifetime addiction to codeine （Fowler； 1986）。 His risk taking extended to the world of finance as
well； where he lost over 100 million of taxpayers’； stockholders’； and his own money （Dietrich &
Thomas； 1972）。
As he grew older； Hughes became obsessed with germs。 On hearing a rumor that an actress he once
dated had a venereal disease； he burned all his clothes； towels； and rugs。 Eventually； the only
people allowed to see him were members of his “Mormon guard；” an elite cadre of men who never
questioned his often bizarre orders。 Those orders included instructions to “wash four distinct and
separate times； using lots of lather each time from individual bars of soap” （Drosnin； 1985； p。 167）。
Anything their employer might touch they wrapped in 50…tissue swaths of Kleenex； each box
opened with a clean； unused knife。
Paradoxically； Hughes lived in squalor。 He rarely wore clothes or washed； never brushed his teeth；
and used an unsterilized needle to inject himself with large doses of codeine。 He stayed in bed for
days at a time。 The richest man in the world slowly starved his 6…foot； 4…inch frame to an emaciated
120 pounds。
Looking to Hughes’s childhood for clues to the paradox of his personality reveals many possible
links between his early experiences and their later transformation。 Similar to his father； Hughes
loved mechanical gadgets。 At age 3； he started taking pictures with a box camera。 He tinkered in his
father’s workshop； creating objects out of bits of wire and metal。 He was allowed to play in the
workshop—as long as he kept it spotless。
Hughes’s parents fussed excessively about his health。 His quiet； dignified mother devoted herself
288
CHAPTER 14： UNDERSTANDING HUMAN PERSONALITY
full…time to him； taking him to the doctor at the slightest provocation。 At 14； his parents sent him to
a boarding school in Massachusetts。 A developing hearing loss isolated him from friendships。 The
highlight of his stay in the East was a ride with his father in a seaplane that “fired his fascination
with airplanes and marked the beginning of a lifelong love affair with aviation； his most enduring
passion。”
Later； when he went to a California school； Hughes spent much of his time alone； riding his horse
in the hills and visiting his Hollywood screenwriter uncle。 At his uncle’s Sunday brunches；
Hughes met many stars and movie moguls； as did his father； who had an eye for beautiful women。
Hughes began to perceive people as objects to be avoided or collected。 He would bring teenaged
aspiring starlets to Hollywood； put them up in apartments； and； as they waited for stardom； forget
all about them （Fowler； 1986）。
A few years before Hughes’s death； his former barber reflected on the eccentric billionaire’s
personality； “I know he has his problems： don’t we all？ He just operates a little different from the
rest of us。 Who’s to say who’s wrong？” （Keats； 1966）。
289
PSYCHOLOGY AND LIFE
290
CHAPTER 15
Psychological Disorders
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
On pletion of this chapter； students should be able to：
1。 Define “normal” and “abnormal”
2。 Identify distinguishing differences between normal and abnormal behavior
3。 Explain current methods of studying and assessing abnormal behavior
4。 Describe the goals of psychological assessment and classification of disorders
5。 Explain the use of each axis of DSM…IV…TR
6。 Demonstrate a basic understanding of the major types of psychological disorders
7。 Explain the theoretical positions from which abnormal behavior is studied
8。 Describe the evidence that some abnormal behaviors have a genetic ponent
9。 Name and discuss the types of schizophrenic disorders
10。 Suggest some factors that may play causal roles in the development of mental illness
CHAPTER OUTLINE
I。 The Nature of Psychological Disorders
A。 Definitions
1。 Psychopathological functioning involves disruptions in emotional；
behavioral； or thought processes that lead to personal distress or that
block one’s ability to achieve important goals
2。 Abnormal psychology is the area of psychological investigation most
directly concerned with understanding the nature of individual
pathologies of mind； mood； and behavior
B。 Deciding What Is Abnormal
1。 DSM…IV…TR provides seven criteria for determining behavior as
abnormal
a） Distress or disability： An individual experiences personal
distress of disabled functioning； producing risk of physical
and/or psychological deterioration or loss of freedom of
action
b） Maladaptiveness： An individual behaves in a fashion that
hinders goal attainment； does not contribute to personal
well…being； or often interferes significantly with the goals of
others and needs of society
c） Irrationality： An individual acts or speaks in ways that are
290
CHAPTER 15： PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDERS
irrational or inprehensible to others
d） Unpredictability： An individual behaviors unpredictably from
situation to situation； as though experiencing loss of control
e） Unconventionality and statistical rarity： An individual violates
norms of socially acceptable behavior in a manner that is
statistically rare
f） Observer disfort： An individual behaviors such that it
makes others unfortable by feeling threatened or
distressed
g） Violation of moral and ideal standards： An individual violates
expectations for how one ought to behave； according to
societal norms
2。 No single DSM…IV…TR criteria is； by itself； a sufficient condition to
distinguish all instances of abnormal behavior from normal
variations in behavior
3。 Mental disorder is a continuum； that ranges from mental health at
one extreme and mental illness at the other
C。 The Problem of Objectivity
1。 The decision to declare an individual as psychologically disordered
or abnormal is a judgment about behavior。 The goal is to make these
judgments as objective as possible； without bias。
2。 Following assignment of the label “abnormal；” others tend to
interpret the individual so designated in a manner that confirms the
judgment as demonstrated by Rosenhan’s “sane in an insane place”
experience
3。 Laing posits that labeling as “mad” suppresses the creative； unique
probing of reality by individuals who are questioning their social
context
4。 Some psychologists advocate a contextual or ecological model of
schizophrenia
5。 Ecological models view abnormality not as the result of a disease
within the person； but as a product of interaction between
individuals and society
6。 Abnormality is viewed as a mismatch between the individual’s
abilities and the needs and norms of society
D。 Historical Perspectives
1。 Historically； people have feared psychological disorders； often
associating them with evil； and imprisoning and subjecting those
affected to radical treatment
a） Hysteria was originally thought to affect only women and to
be caused by a wandering uterus under the devil’s control
2。 Emergence of the medical model occurred in the late 1700s； when society
291
PSYCHOLOGY AND LIFE
began perceiving those with psychological disorders as suffering
from illness； rather than as possessed or immoral
a） Pinel was an early developer of a classification system for
psychological difficulties； based on the premise that
disorders of thought； mood； and behavior were somewhat
similar to physical； organic illnesses
b） The first prehensive classification system of
psychological disorders was created by Kraepelin in 1896
3。 Emergence of psychological models； an alternative to the medical model；
focusing on the psychological causes and treatment of abnormal
behavior； emerged from the late 1700s through the 1800s
a） Mesmer proposed that some disorders were due to
disruptions in the flow of a force he called animal magnetism；
and pioneered new techniques eventually to bee known
as hypnotism
b） Mesmer’s techniques were adopted by Jean Charcot； who
passed that knowledge to his student； Sigmund Freud
E。 The Etiology of Psychopathology
1。 Etiology refers to the causal or contributory factors in the
development of psychological and medical problems
2。 Two general categories of causal factors：
a） Biological approaches assume that psychological disturbances
are directly attributable to underlying biological factors such
as structural abnormalities in the brain
b） Psychological approaches focus on the causal role of
psychological or social factors as contributing to the
development of psychopathology。 Three models
predominate。
（i） Psychodynamic。 This model； as developed by Freud；
posited the causes of psychopathology as located
inside the person； holding those factors to be
psychological； rather than physiological
（a） Symptoms are rooted in unconscious conflict；
much of which derives from conflict between id
and superego
（b） Defen