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Definitions of abnormality (Evaluation (Some abnormal behaviour is…
Definitions of abnormality
Key terms
Cultural relativism - the view that behaviour cannot be judged properly unless it is viewed in the context of the culture in which it originates characteristics is given, i.e. the symptoms that should be looked for.
Deviation from social norms - Abnormal behaviour is seen as a deviation from unstated rules about how one 'ought' to behave. Anything that violates these rules is considered abnormal.
DSM - (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) A list of mental disorders that is used to diagnose mental disorders. For each disorder a list of clinical
Statistical infrequency - Abnormality is defined as those behaviours that are extremely rare, i.e. any behaviour that is found in very few people is regarded as normal.
Statistical infrequency
Mean, mode, median
Define what is common or normal, then we also have an idea of what is not common i.e. abnormal.
Example
Consider a characteristic such as a fear of dogs. You can ask everyone in your class to say how fearful they are of dogs on a rating scale of 1 to 10 where 1 is no fear at all and 10 is panic. We would expect most people to give us a figure of 4,5,6,7 - their ratings would cluster around the middle. There would be a few people either end of the scale. The abnormal ratings are those at either end because they are not the 'norm'.
Deviation from social norms
Created from a group of people
Acceptable behaviour
Usually for goodness and safety of others
Some rules are there to prevent unacceptable behaviour
Example
In the past, homosexuality was classified as abnormal and regarded as a mental disorder. It was also against the law in the UK. The judgement was based on social deviation - it was a judgement made by society at that time. Other forms of sexual behaviour continue to be classified as abnormal, such as paedophilia and voyeurism. The reason that such behaviours are judged as abnormal is because they deviate form social norms of what is acceptable.
Evaluation
Some abnormal behaviour is desirable
The cut-off point is subjectively determined
Statistical infrequency is sometimes appropriate
Susceptible to abuse
Deviance is related to context and degree
There are some strengths
Cultural relativism