Psychological Disorders FRQ

Cory has difficulty leaving his house on time since it takes him so long to check everything and to make sure his bathroom is clean. He gets upset easily when his mother tries to rush him. He will yell and scream when she asks him to stop and get going. Explain what each term is and how it applies to his experience. 

a. obsessive-compulsive disorder

b. DSM-IV

c. Psychopathology

d. Behavioral perspective

Obsessive Compulsive disorder occurs when an individual cannot stop thinking about the same thoughts (obsessions) and does certain activities/tasks over and over again (compulsions). This is observed in Cory’s case because he can’t stop thinking about the germs in his house and bathroom and how he can become ill from it, so to alleviate this anxiety he is constantly cleaning, and this ritual becomes part of his everyday life. DSM-IV is the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, and this book is used to diagnose psychological disorders. It has a list of all disorders, and criteria of each. By looking at Cory’s case, he would be diagnosed with OCD because he is obsessed with germs/cleanliness, and so he is continuously cleaning. This takes more time than needed and interferes with his routine. Psychopathology, also referred to as a mental illness, needs to be diagnosed based on the symptoms and is to be cured through therapy and treatment. To be considered a disorder, it must be deviant, distressful, and dysfunctional. Cory’s OCD is deviant because it cleaning the house and bathroom every other minute is not a normal behavior accepted by society. It is distressful because these rituals cause embarrassment for Cory. It is dysfunctional because he is often late to school or meetings because of him completing his rituals. The behavioral perspective says that behaviors are acquired through reinforcement. According to this, to stop Cory’s OCD, the behaviors that would not involve cleaning would be positively reinforced, and the behaviors that promote his cleaning rituals and OCD would not be reinforced. An example of behavioral therapy would be counter conditioning which pairs trigger stimulus with a new response that is incompatible with fear.