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Causes of Abnormal Behaviour
Linking Childhood Experiences with
Adult Psychopathology
All human persons think, feel and behave as individuals. ... With the world population reaching almost six and a half billion, it is difficult to fully appreciate the complexity of human behaviour. The study of human behaviour the world over brings to the fore the blatant fact; Behaviour is extremely variable and unpredictable.
How, then can we precisely, establish a general consensus on what "abnormal behaviour" is? ... The answers to these questions are, like the behaviour they study, far from straightforward. ... However, my main focus is on the latter, which I eventually confine to examining the connection between childhood experiences and maladaptive behaviour. In order to set the stage for discussion I will briefly look at what is meant by the term abnormal behaviour and how this has been interpreted in the past.
Abnormal versus Normal
Literally, the word abnormal means away from what is normal. ... It wouldnt take a psychologist to recognise that this behaviour isnt normal.
In theoretical terms, the most direct approach to identifying maladaptive behaviour is to examine the statistical incident of the behaviour i. ... Distress, disability and/or dysfunction are often used as additional indicators of abnormal behaviour.
Provided we can identify behaviour as abnormal. The next fundamental question we need to address is "What causes one to behave in a way that is so incompatible to the norm? ...
History of Psychopathology
History, in the context of abnormal behaviour is relatively superficial. As recent as the 1600s the notion of demons, devils and that of witchery was the foremost explanation with regards abnormal behaviour. ...
The questions asked by all approaches about the cause of behaviour are fairly consistent. ... Is the explicit behaviour only symptoms or the true cause? ... (Emery, 1995: 20)
There are, however, no simple answers to questions such as these and numerous attempts to solve the dilemma has left us with several alternative viewpoints on maladaptive behaviour. ... These models are important not only because they provide different ways of understanding the nature of maladaptive behaviour, but they also suggest alternative treatment methods for the behaviour. ... Therefore I will condense the rest of my essay to one side of the controversy, nurture, delving for explanations of abnormal behaviour that may lie in how a child experiences the world. ... I will look at each respectively placing major emphasis on the sociocultural approach and its ideology on the causes and of abnormal behaviour.
Approximate Word count = 2012
Approximate Pages = 8
(250 words per page double spaced)
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