Abnormal psychology

Psychology is the study of human behavior and its causes. Human beings react differently according to the environment they are exposed to. The people who conduct this study are called psychologists. They seek to understand peoples behavior concerning emotions, the way they think, the way they see things, their learning process, what motivates them, cognition, their personality types and finally abnormal behavior that is regarded as abnormal psychology. Behavior that deviates from what is usual is regarded as abnormal and since psychology studies it, it opens up to abnormal psychology. This may also be referred to as statistical deviation.

There is a certain way that people are expected to behave at a certain age or time. If they stray from this set of activities, they can be regarded as abnormal. Many a time, human beings will behave abnormally due to several factors. As a result, their behavior pattern changes in the way they think and react emotionally to different situations. Personal distress also refers to abnormal psychology where a persons behavior and thoughts make them uncomfortable. Psychologists prefer to call this abnormality maladaptiveness.

Maladaptive behavior is further classified into two aspects recognized as maladaptive to oneself or society. When individuals are maladaptive to self, this indicates that they are undergoing a phase in their life where they feel that they have failed. They feel worthless if they cannot reach their goals in life. They feel like losers since they have been unable to adapt to lifes demands. On the other hand, maladaptive to society encompasses the inability of individuals to fit in social groups. It disrupts or interferes with their ability to socialize with other people. This condition can be caused by environmental and emotional factors, which may cause stress.

Abnormal psychology manifests itself as depression thus most of its symptoms reflect those experienced by depressed individuals. An individual may suffer from addictions, eating disorders, mood disorders, personality disorders, psychological disorders, sexual disorders, and anxiety disorders, which are at times referred to as neuroses. These disorders are further broken into four types, the first one being generalized anxiety disorder. This condition is characterized by anxiety, apprehension, helplessness, and paranoia. Panic disorder is the next type and individuals with this condition often suffer from panic attacks. These panic attacks come in form of extreme and sudden anxiety and this prompts one to behave abnormally.

The third type is the obsessive-compulsive disorder characterized by repetitive, persistent, ritualistic, unavoidable, and uncontrollable thoughts. These people may be bent on performing one duty repetitively in a ritual-like manner. Most of the times, they may want to keep cleaning, keep talking about disasters or even death. Phobic disorders are the fourth type and an individual suffers irrational fears. A person may suffer from a simple phobia whereby they will fear one thing in particular. Others will suffer complex phobias where they will fear several things. Other disorders that a person with abnormal psychology may suffer are somatization disorders, which revolve around abnormal physical behavior. Schizophrenia also falls under the abnormal disorders. Treatment for abnormal psychology involves the intervention of a psychologist who may offer counseling to the victim. In severe cases, drugs and hospitalization are recommended to monitor the situation.