These four definitions are useful for identifying different kinds of abnormality depending on the situation and the definition that is the most suitable – the one thing that needs to be remembered is that all the definitions are culturally relative – therefore abnormality can ever only be defined in the context of how a particular culture would view that behaviour Statistical Frequency shows us a quantifiable way of identifying abnormality so that we can compare and contrast numbers of people who display varying levels of the abnormality.
However, it doesn’t distinguish between desirable or undesirable behaviour, which means good things that are rare, are considered abnormal. The problem with this is that the word “abnormal” has negative connotations. Deviation From Social Norms shows us the viewpoint of the rest of society and how they would see the behaviour to be, according to the social “norms”. This considers other peoples’ views but it doesn’t look at the individual. It also excludes people who don’t agree with the rest of society’s “norms”.
Failure to Function Adequately looks at the abnormality on an individual level and whether the person is able to cope on their own or not according to the society they live in. This is a more personal way of looking at abnormality and from it we can help the individual more specifically during therapy. However, “functioning adequately” means different things to different people. Deviation From Ideal Mental Health takes a positive approach at identifying abnormality as it tries to identify what is desirable behaviour, rather than what is undesirable like the rest of the definitions.
However, it is difficult to achieve all of the requirements on the checklist all at once at any time, and the lists need to be modified depending on the person.The common factor between all cognitive therapists is that they all believe faulty thinking is the cause of abnormality. Therapy usually involves identifying the self defeating statements of the individual and challenging them. The client often keeps a diary of their positive and negative thoughts, practices positive affirmations, etc.
Evaluation – Models of Abnormality These four models of psychology are useful for looking at curing abnormality in very different ways, depending on the situation and what kind of psychologist the client/patient goes to. It is never certain that only one kind of treatment will help cure someone of an abnormality as everyone is different. The Behavioural Model is useful as it tries to eliminate the behaviour that the abnormality is causing, however since it does not try to cure the causes of the problem, only the product, this usually means that the abnormality is not entirely dealt with.
The Psychodynamic Model is helpful for a lot of people as it is a coherent system of ideas and theories which many find useful. This model does not work for everyone however as many people believe Freud’s ideas are too outdated and irrelevant today, whereas others have updated his theory with new modern ideas. The Biological Model looks at the abnormality very scientifically – diagnosing mental illnesses is a very “black and white/set in stone” process. Many peoples’ symptoms are helped through the psychiatric treatments this model offers, although a main criticism is that the psychological causes of the abnormality are not being dealt with.
The Cognitive Model is gaining more attention as time goes on, especially when mixing techniques with the other models. It explains abnormality by the thought processes of the individual and seeks to change them, which should in turn change their behaviour and rid them of the abnormality. However a lot of responsibility and pressure is put on the client and they can often feel worse from the treatment if they feel they are to blame for their abnormality.