Mental Disorders (Psychopathology)
Characteristics of Phobias
Behavioural Characteristics
-The behavioural characteristics of phobias include panic, avoidance, and endurance.
-Panic results from heightened physiological arousal triggered by the hypothalamus in response to the phobic stimulus.
-Avoidance behaviour is negatively reinforced through classical conditioning, impacting the patient’s daily life.
-Endurance occurs when the patient remains exposed to the phobic stimulus for an extended period, experiencing heightened anxiety.
Emotional Characteristics
-The main emotional characteristics of phobias are anxiety and an unawareness that the anxiety towards the phobic stimulus is irrational.
Cognitive Characteristics
-Cognitive characteristics include selective attention, irrational beliefs, and cognitive distortions.
-Selective attention involves the patient focusing on the phobic stimulus, often due to irrational beliefs or cognitive distortions.
Characteristics of Depression
Behavioural Characteristics
-Behavioural characteristics include changed activity levels, aggression, and altered sleeping and eating patterns.
Emotional Characteristics
-Emotional characteristics include lowered self-esteem, persistent low mood, and high levels of anger.
Cognitive Characteristics
Cognitive characteristics involve absolutist thinking, selective attention to negative events, and poor concentration.
Characteristics of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
Behavioural Characteristics
-Behavioural characteristics include compulsions and avoidance behaviour.
Emotional Characteristics
-Emotional characteristics encompass guilt, disgust, depression, and anxiety.
Cognitive Characteristics
-Cognitive characteristics involve acknowledging excessive and irrational anxiety, developing cognitive strategies, and experiencing obsessive thoughts.
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