Psychomythology of Psychopathology: Myths and Mythbusting in Teaching Abnormal Psychology

Background: A great amount of information is presented to psychology students through various mediums, often leading to misinformation and believing inaccurate psychological myths. Objective: We conducted two studies to examine psychomythology of psychopathology and whether mythbusting may be an effective pedagogical tool. Method: In Study 1, a total of 251 participants were recruited and asked about psychology myths they believed by using the Myths of Abnormal Psychology Questionnaire (MAP). In Study 2, a total of 46 students across two sections of abnormal psychology courses were asked about psychological myths they believed at the onset of class and at the end of class using the MAP. These students also were provided with an educational mythbusting intervention throughout the class. Results: Participants endorsed several myths of psychopathology and indicated that the greatest sources of their understanding came from instructors, the internet, movies, and mythbusting led to a decrease in myth endorsement. Conclusion: Students enter abnormal psychology courses believing several inaccurate myths and mythbusting appears to be a viable tool to address these misconceptions. Teaching Implications: Mythbusting can be implemented within abnormal psychology courses as an an engaging and effective teaching tool, as well as a means to model scientific thinking.

The Impact of Strengths-Based Assessment Education on Undergraduate Students’ Knowledge of Disorders and Mental Illness Stigma

Background: While abnormal psychology courses have traditionally focused on psychopathology, there are several benefits to adopting a strengths-based approach. Objective: This study examined the teaching of a strengths-based assessment approach (the DICE-PM Model), compared to teaching as usual, in an undergraduate abnormal psychology course. Method: Two sections of an abnormal psychology course were taught a strengths-based assessment approach while two sections were taught as usual. All participants completed measures of knowledge of psychological disorders and mental illness stigma at the beginning and end of the semester. Results: Both groups demonstrated significant improvements in knowledge of disorders and a significant decrease in mental illness stigma with the exception of one category assessed (recovery), generally with small effect sizes. Those in the strengths group, compared to the control, showed a significantly greater decrease in mental illness stigma involving anxiety related to others with mental illness, though also with a small effect. Conclusion: Findings suggest strengths-based assessment education does not compromise the instruction of psychological disorders and is equivalent to a traditional abnormal psychology course in reducing mental illness stigma. Teaching Implications: Such an approach may be beneficial early in students’ education to reduce mental illness stigma and promote comprehensive assessment practices.

Realising the potential of general population research to reconceptualise the study of “delusions”: From normalising “psychosis” to defamiliarising “normality”

Over recent decades a research programme involving nonclinical samples has provided a justification for the use of normalising practices within cognitive behaviour therapy for psychosis. These studies have found that, contrary to mainstream psychiatric assumptions, beliefs considered delusional are neither rare in the general population nor qualitatively different from “nondelusional” beliefs, whilst theories from a “normal” rather than “abnormal” psychology have shown them to be intelligible rather than un-understandable. Yet the programme’s inherent limitations have meant that the potential of nonclinical research has not been fully realised. An alternative research programme is proposed which could elucidate the diversity of belief in the general population by examining the role of social norms and lived belief narratives in unconventional belief communities. This could address the limitations of the normalising programme, provide a necessary corrective to the “clinician’s illusion” bias, and prompt a more fundamental reconceptualisation of beliefs considered delusional.

Existential Approaches and Cognitive Behavior Therapy: Challenges and Potential

Existential concerns such as death, responsibility, meaninglessness, and isolation not only are the hallmark of existential psychotherapy but also are frequently encountered by CBT therapists—nevertheless, due to epistemological and ideological differences, existential and CBT approaches to psychotherapy had little overlap historically. During recent years, existential issues are increasingly discussed in empirical clinical psychology, e.g., the potential role of the fear of death for a variety of mental disorders by Iverach et al. (Clinical Psychology Review, 34(7), 580–593, 2014), and there is increasing experimental evidence for a causal rather than correlational role of death anxiety discussed by Menzies and Dar-Nimrod (Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 126(4), 367–377, 2017). Further, existential concerns are common themes in CBT discussed by Grober et al. (Psychotherapeut, 61(3), 229–236, 2016) and may play an important role in the training of CBT therapists discussed by Worrell et al. (Journal of Psychotherapy and Counselling Psychology Reflections, 3(1), 9–16, 2018) as well as in personal therapy and supervision.

PSYCHODIAGNOSTICS AND PSYCHOCORECTION OF BEHAVIORAL DISORDERS AND DISADAPTATION IN ADOLESCENTS WITH PSYCHOLOGICAL DEPRIVATION

Aim of the study on the basis of study of abnormal psychology phenomenology to learn propensity to disorders of behavior and displays of disadaptation for teenagers, as a factor of origin and realization of different forms of victim behavior that can become reason of origin of propensity to the destructive options and tendencies of behavior in interpersonality relations for teenagers with a psychological deprivate and to work out fitting for their psychocorrection.Materials and methods. By us were inspected from 2018 to 2020 50 teenagers by age 16-18, that was brought up shelter of domestic type for the children of orphans and children confined of the paternal caring.Experimental psychological researches included: test of А.Н. Orel is for the exposure of indexes of propensity to disorders of behavior of teenagers, that sent to the estimation of readiness or inclination of teenagers to realization of different forms of deviative behavior; test of О.О. Andronikova for the exposure of indexes of propensity to victim behavior of teenagers.Results. As a result of this study, psychodiagnostics and psychocorrection were carried out to 50 teenagers with a psychological deprivate, it was educed greater propensity to victim behavior and characteristic intentionally creation or provocation of conflict situation for the pupils of refuge for children-orphans, than for teenagers that was brought up in families.Conclusions. On the basis of analysis of individual, personality, social-psychological factors, that stipulate forming of social psychological rejections in behavior of teenagers with psychological deprivation, necessary application of timely complex, psychocorrection, due to renewal for the teenagers of social psychological adaptation, also on psychoprophylaxis of forming of victim and aggressive character traits.

The Persistence of Stigma Reduction After Teaching Abnormal Psychology Using Celebrity Narratives

Research shows that stigma toward mental illness prevents a large percentage of college students from seeking help. Finding pedagogies that can be utilized in the classroom to reduce stigma is important. The present study replicated previous research that utilized celebrity case material in the teaching of abnormal psychology for the purpose of reducing public stigma toward mental illness and help seeking. The present study also examined whether stigma reductions would persist beyond the initial post-testing. Data were collected using a pre-post design from 48 (experimental group) and 23 (control group) college undergraduates enrolled in an abnormal psychology course. Compared to the control group, the use of celebrities as narratives to teach about mental illness resulted in reduced public stigma toward mental illness and reduced stigma toward seeking help which persisted over a 6-month time period.