Introduction to

ABNORMAL PSYCHOLOGY
(Episode 2)
Kathleen Kris D. Cortez, RPsy, RPm
Ron Gabriel A. Peji, RPm, CCTSI, CCTP-II
PsycheTrendz Psychological Services
Unit 8, EA Archon Building, Aguinaldo
Highway, Sampaloc 1, City of Dasmarinas, Cavite
Defining “Normal”

◈ A woman refusing to eat for

several days
Defining “Normal”

◈ A woman refusing to eat for

several days

In many religious traditions, refusing to eat

several days called fasting is a ritual of
cleansing and penitence
Defining “Normal”

◈ A man barking like a dog

and crawling on the floor on
his hands and knees.
Defining “Normal”

◈ A man barking like a dog

and crawling on the floor on
his hands and knees.

In Yoruba of Africa, traditional healers act like a

dog, barking and crawling during healing rituals.
Defining “Normal”

◈ A man kissing another man

Defining “Normal”

◈ A man kissing another man

In European culture, men are

comfortable greeting their fellow men
with a kiss.
 Defining “Normal”
◈ Building a shrine to her
dead husband in a corner of
her living room and leaving
food and gifts for him at the
altar.
Defining “Normal”
◈ Building a shrine to her dead husband
in a corner of her living room and
leaving food and gifts for him at the
altar.

In Shinto and Buddhist religions, it is a custom to

build altar for dead loved ones, offer food and gifts
and speak as they were in the room.
What is a normal behavior?

◈ Any behavior that pertains to

accepted social patterns
◈ Usual
◈ Common
◈ Average
◈ Typical
◈ Norm
2/1/2021

What is a normal behavior?

◈ CULTURAL RELATIVISM
-NO universal standards or rules
for labeling a behavior as normal
or abnormal.
-Behaviors can be normal or
abnormal relative to cultural
norms.
ABNORMALITY
When does one become abnormal?
 PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDER

 Clinically referred to as ‘psychopathology’

 Characterized by an abnormal behavior

manifested by: 1) dysfunction; 2) distress; 3)
deviance; and 4) danger

 There is not yet a single criterion that fully

defines abnormality.
 THE 4 Ds OF
ABNORMALITY
What are the factors to be considered to
say that someone is abnormal?
1. Dysfunction

 The breakdown in cognitive, emotional,

and/or behavioral functioning

 The dissonance between a person’s stimulus-

response system

 It is hard to draw the line between normality

and abnormality.
2. Distress

 Unhappiness, pain, or suffering that affects a

person’s physical and psychological
functioning

 Adverse emotional and psychological

responses that hinder a person to function
within the normal range
2. Distress

 Suffering and distress are still considered as

normal parts of human life, provided that the
one who experiences them responds
logically.
3. Deviance

 Psychological or behavioral manifestations

that are atypical or not culturally expected

 Doing away with the norms of the society

 The greater the deviation, the more

abnormality.
4. Danger

 An increased possibility of a person hurting

(and even killing) oneself or others

 Increased risk of suffering, death, pain, or

impairment
What is NOT NORMAL?

◈ UNUSUALNESS
-Behavior that is not common
considered as abnormal.

“Usual behavior is NORMAL

and
unusual is ABNORMAL”
What is NOT NORMAL?

◈ DISCOMFORT
- If persons suffer from discomfort and
wishes to rid specific behavior.

“Being comfortable is NORMAL and

wasn’t is ABNORMAL.”
What is NOT NORMAL?

◈ MALADAPTIVENESS
-behaviors that cause people to suffer
distress that prevent them from
functioning in daily life.
-4D’s: danger, dysfunction, distress
and deviance.

“Failure to adjust cause

ABNORMALITY”
What is NOT NORMAL?

◈ MENTAL ILLNESS
-Identifiable physical process that
differs from “health” and leads to
specific symptoms.
-Thru, biological process.
-Thru, psychological process.

“ABNORMALITY is through
diagnosis.”