HISTORY, THEORIES

AND PARADIGMS

Abnormal Psychology
"Prior to the twentieth century, persons suffering from
mental illness were thought to be 'alienated,' not only from
the rest of society but from their own true natures. Those
experts who studied mental pathologies were known as
'alienists’
- The Alienist, Caleb Carr (1994)
LEARNING OBJECTIVES

• Learn the historical perspectives on

abnormality.
• Understand the influence of the archaic
treatment approaches in the emergence of
modern perspectives in abnormal
psychology.
• Learn about the three general approaches to
understanding psychological disorders.
Historical
Perspectives on
Abnormality
These theories have been used to explain
abnormal behavior.
Biological Theories

◦ Viewed abnormal behavior as similar to

physical diseases caused by the breakdown
of systems in the body.
◦ The appropriate cure is the restoration of
bodily health.
◦ These theories can be traced back to
ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome and China.
Biological Theories

◦ Unexplained aches, pains, depressed mood,

distress, and apathy about life is caused by
the wandering uterus.
◦ Ancient Egyptians believed that the
wandering uterus interferes with other
organs thus producing the symptoms.
◦ The Greeks called this condition “Hysteria”.
◦ The cure for the said condition involves the
use of strong smelling substances to drive
the uterus back into place.
Hippocrates and the Greek
Physicians
◦ Abnormal behavior is just like any other
disease.
◦ He believed that the body is composed of
four basic humors (distinct bodily fluids):
blood, phlegm, yellow bile and black bile.
◦ All abnormal behavior were caused by
imbalances in the following bodily fluids.
Ancient China
◦ Chinese medicine is based on the concept
of yin (negative force) and yang (positive
force).
◦ If these forces are in balance, a person is
healthy. An imbalance occurs, it is believed
to produce abnormal behavior.
◦ Human emotions are believed to be
controlled by internal organs.
◦ As vital air flows through the organs, an
individual experiences particular emotions
(e.g. heart = joy, lungs = sorrow, liver =
anger, spleen = worry, kidney = fear)
Supernatural Theories
◦ Abnormal behavior was attributed to the
possession of evil spirits.
◦ Typical treatment was exorcism.
◦ Other times, a person thought to be
possessed were just killed.
Supernatural Theories
o During the Stone Age and Middle Ages,
holes were drilled in a person’s skull to
release the evil spirits inside in a process
called trephination.
Witchcraft and Psychic
Epidemics
◦ People (mostly females) accused of
witchcraft were persecuted and burned at
the stake.
◦ These people may have had mental
disorders.
◦ Their beliefs and unusual behavior may as
well be products of their delusions and
hallucinations.
◦ Psychic epidemics
Witchcraft and Psychic
Epidemics
◦ People (mostly females) accused of
witchcraft were persecuted and burned at
the stake.
◦ These people may have had mental
disorders.
◦ Their beliefs and unusual behavior may as
well be products of their delusions and
hallucinations.
◦ Psychic epidemics (St. Vitus Dance and
Tarantism) are phenomena involving a
large number of people engaging in
unusual behavior.
The Rise of Asylums and Inhumane
Treatment for Patients
◦ People with mental disorders lived in very harsh, often
inhumane conditions inside asylums.
◦ Most are locked in chains, wallowing in their own
excrement with little food or clothing for warmth.
◦ Such is the case in Bedlam – The Hospital of Saint
Mary of Bethlehem in London.
Early Psychological Theories

◦ Viewed behavior resulting from traumas,

bereavements and chronic stress.
◦ Rest, relaxation, change of environment, and certain
herbal medicines are helpful.
The Moral Treatment in the 18th and
19th Century

◦ The mental hygiene movement viewed psychological

problems in a different light, believed to be
stemming from people’s separation from nature and
stress.
◦ Prescribed treatment included prayers, incantations,
rest, and relaxation in a serene and physically
appealing place.
Philippe Pinel (1745-1826)

◦ A French physician who lead the moral treatment

movement by freeing mental patients from horrible
conditions in hospitals.
◦ He provided patients with clean and sunny rooms,
comfortable sleeping quarters and good food.
◦ Pinel basically restored the patients’ dignity and
tranquility leading to improvement in their
functioning.
Quaker William Tuke (1732-1822)

◦ Founded The Retreat, an asylum in England in direct

response to the inhumane treatment of other
asylums.
◦ He restored patients’ self-restraint by treating them
with respect and dignity while encouraging them to
exercise self-control.
Dorothea Dix (1802-1887)

◦ Her lobbying efforts led to the passage of laws and

appropriations to fund the clean-up of mental
hospitals, and the training of mental health
professionals dedicated to the moral treatment of
patients
◦ She helped establish more than 30 institutions in the
United States, Canada, Newfoundland and Scotland.
Emergence of
Modern
Perspectives
Roots of Modern Biological
Perspectives

o There’s an influx of knowledge about anatomy,

physiology, neurology, and biochemistry in the late
19th century.
o This led to the reemergence of biological
approaches in understanding abnormal behavior.
Wilhelm Griesinger (1817-1868)

• Published The Pathology and Therapy of Psychic

Disorders (1945).
• The work presented a systematic argument that all
psychological disorders can be explained in terms of
brain pathology.
Emil Kraepelin (1856-1926)

• Emphasized the importance of brain pathology in

psychological disorders.
• Credited for developing a scheme for classifying
symptoms into discrete disorders that is the basis for
our modern classification systems.
• Formulated the classification of two forms of
psychosis known as the Kraepelinian Dichotomy
• Manic depression (Bipolar Disorder)
• Dementia Praecox (Schizophrenia)
Richard Krafft-Ebing (1840-1902)

◦ Discovered that syphilis, a sexually transmitted

disease, caused one form of mental disorder,
general paresis, a disease that leads to paralysis,
insanity and death.
◦ He also authored his seminal work Psychopathia
Sexualis (1886), a forensic reference book and the
leading medico-legal textual authority on sexual
pathology during its time.
Roots of Psychoanalytic Perspective

◦ Franz Anton Mesmer, an Austrian physician,

developed mesmerism, which induced a trancelike
state in his patients where the mere suggestion of
being cured lead to the disappearance of symptoms.
◦ Jean Charcot, Hippolyte-Marie Bernheim, and
Ambroise-Auguste Liebault’s works on hypnosis and
hysteria helped in advancing psychological
perspectives on abnormality.
Roots of Psychoanalytic Perspective
◦ Sigmund Freud became convinced that much of the
mental life of an individual remains unconscious.
◦ Josef Breuer discovered that encouraging patients
to talk about their problems while under hypnosis led
to a release of emotion and upwelling, now termed
as catharsis.
◦ Published the paper On the Psychical Mechanisms of
Hysterical Phenomena (1893) which discussed their
discoveries about hypnosis, the unconscious and
catharsis, becoming the foundation for
psychoanalysis.
Roots of Behaviorism

◦ Behaviorism is the study of the impact of

reinforcements and punishments on behavior had a
profound impact on psychology which lead to
current effective psychological treatments.
◦ Key figures include Ivan Pavlov, John Watson, and
B.F. Skinner.
The Cognitive Revolution

◦ In the 1950s, some psychologists argued that

behaviorism was limited in its explanatory power
because it does not take into account the internal
thought processes that mediate the relationship
between stimulus and response.
◦ In the 1970s, psychology shifted its focus on thought
processes that influence behavior and emotion,
giving rise to the cognitive revolution.
◦ Key figures include: Albert Bandura (Self-Efficacy),
Albert Ellis (Rational Emotive Therapy), Aaron Beck
(Cognitive Therapy).