CONCEPT OF DEVIANCE
K. Merton.
DEVIANT- is the person involved in deviance
DEVIANT BEHAVIOR- behavior which does not conform to social
expectation
◦ "Deviance" is a wide-ranging term used by sociologists to
refer to behaviour that varies, in some way, from a
social norm. In this respect, it is evident that the concept
of deviance refers to some form of "rule-breaking"
behaviour.
◦ Deviance is any behavior or physical appearance that is
socially challenged and/or condemned because it departs
from the norm and expectations of the group.
◦ The norms for one group may vary from another.
◦ A group determines what is deviant- change and evolve
over time
TYPES OF DEVIANCE
Admired behaviour:
An example of deviance that might be considered as "good" or
"admirable" behaviour (whilst also breaking social norms) might be
something like heroism
Odd behaviour:
Many forms of behaviour - whilst not being criminal - are frequently
considered to be somehow "odd" or "different" to normal
behaviour.
Bad behaviour:
Deviant behaviour in this category tends to be restricted to law-
breaking or criminal behaviour - behaviour that in some way is seen
as being something more than simply outlandish or eccentric.
TWO (2) VIEWS IN DEVIANCE
Objectivist conception:
Defines deviance as norm-violating behavior; norms serve as an
objective standard by which deviant behavior may be discovered
(Ward et., al 1994)
Deviance is about the characteristics/qualities of an act of a person.
There is something about a human or their behavior that makes
them deviant.
Subjectivist conception:
Defines deviance as an act that has been labeled “deviance” by a
social audience.
Subjectivists believe that deviance is a subjective perception of
human beings, rather than an objective characteristic/quality.
Nothing is inherently deviant; it is all about the labels that are
applied to it.
Strain theory
Crime= conflict between goals and legal means
◦ It was developed by famed American sociologist Robert
◦ “Strain” refers to the discrepancies between culturally
defined goals and the institutionalized means available to
achieve these goals.
◦ Merton was proposing a typology of deviance based
upon two criteria:
(1) a person’s motivations or her adherence to cultural goals;
(2) a person’s belief in how to attain his goals.
◦ A typology is a classification scheme designed to facilitate
understanding.
◦ According to Merton, there are five types of deviance
based upon these criteria: conformity, innovation,
ritualism, retreatism and rebellion.
FIVE (5) TYPES OF DEVIANCE
1. Conformity: pursuing socially approved goals and means.
The people who believe in normative means for attaining
goals legitimately. They follow the rules of society. They
are called as conformists.
2. Innovation: pursuing the socially approved goals but using
the socially unapproved means to obtain culturally
approved goals. These individuals are called innovators.
3. Ritualism: rejecting the socially approved goals but
pursuing the socially approved means to obtain culturally
approved goals The individuals who stop trying to achieve
goals but believe in using legitimate means for attaining
goals are called ritualists.
4. 4. Retreatism: rejecting both the cultural goals and the
means to obtain it. These individuals simply avoid both the
goals and means established by society without replacing
those norms with their counter-cultural forces. They are
called as retreatists.
5. 5. Rebellion: rejecting the cultural goals and means but
working on something to replace them. These individuals
substitute new goals and new means of attaining those
goals to bring about revolutionary change and create a
new society.
DIFFERENTIAL ASSOCIATION THEORY
 ◦ This theory was developed by Edwin H. Sutherland, who
was a sociologist and a professor.
◦ He created the theory to explain the reasons why people
commit crime.
◦ The theory is based upon the idea that criminals commit
crimes based upon their association with other people.
NINE (9) BASIC TENETS
◦ Criminal behavior is learned behavior.
◦ Criminal behavior is learned by interacting with other
people by communicating with words and gestures.
◦ The main portion of learning the criminal behavior
happens among small groups of people.
◦ Learning about crime includes learning the techniques of
committing a crime, as well as learning the motivation and
attitudes towards crime.
◦ Legal codes demonstrate what is 'good' or 'bad' and
provide a motivation for crimes. In other words, the law
expresses what is right and wrong to an offender.
◦ A person becomes a criminal because of frequent criminal
patterns.
◦ The differential association theory can differ in frequency,
duration, priority and intensity.
DETTERENCE THEORY
◦ The learning of criminal behavior by association is similar
to all other types of learning.
◦ Criminal and non-criminal behavior is an expression of the
same needs and values.
SOCIAL CONTROL THEORY
Social control is an attempt by society to regulate peoples
thoughts and behaviors in ways that limit, or punish
deviance.
INFORMAL SANCTIONS
◦ NEGATIVE SANCTION –
a negative social reactions to deviance
◦ P0SITIVE SANCTION-
affirmative reactions, usually in response to conformity.
FORMAL SANCTIONING of Deviance occurs when norms
are codified into law, and violation almost always results in
negative sanctions from the criminal justice system- the
police, the courts and the prison system
SOCIAL CONTROL THEORY
SYMBOLIC INTERACTIONISM
◦ Travis Hirschi argued that criminal activity occurs when an
individual’s attachment to society is weakened.
◦ This attachment depends on the strength of social bonds
that hold people to society.
◦ According to Hirschi, four social bonds bind us together –
Attachment; Commitment; Involvement, and Belief.
ATTACHMENT- expressed concern about what others
think, or sensitivity to the opinion of others
COMMITMENTS- investment of time, energy and oneself
INVOLVEMENTS- sufficient time and energy spent on
conventional activities
BELIEFS- the extent to which an individual “has been
socialized into and accepts the common belief system”
DETTERENCE THEORY
◦ Deterrence theory says that people don't commit crimes
because they are afraid of getting caught - instead of being
motivated by some deep moral sense.
◦ According to deterrence theory, people are most likely to
be dissuaded from committing a crime if the punishment is
swift, sure, and severe.
◦ The deterrence theory states that three basic concepts of
punishment will influence a potential offender’s decision
to commit a crime.
◦ It theorizes that if these characteristics are in place, it will
deter or prevent people from committing crimes. These
three concepts are:
1. The severity of punishment- It is believed that the more
severe a punishment, the more likely that a rational
person will cease from criminal acts.
2. The certainty of punishment- simply means making sure
that punishment takes place whenever a criminal act is
committed.
3. Celerity of punishment- the punishment must be swift to
prevent crime.
TWO (2) BASIC TYPES OF DETERRENCE
◦ General- designed to prevent crime in the general
population. Thus, the state’s punishment of offenders
serves as an example for others in the general population
who have not yet participated in criminal events. It is
meant to make them aware of the horrors of official
sanctions to put them off committing crimes.
◦ Specific- designed—by the nature of the prescribed
sanctions—to deter only the individual offender from
committing that crime in the future. Proponents of specific
deterrence also believe that punishing offenders severely
will make them unwilling to re-offend in the future.
◦ Symbolic interactionism is a theoretical approach that can
be used to explain how societies and/or social groups
come to view behaviors as deviant or conventional.
 ◦ Labeling theory examines the ascribing of a deviant
behavior to another person by members of society.
◦ Thus, what is considered deviant is determined not so
much by the behaviors themselves or the people who
commit them, but by the reactions of others to these
behaviors.
◦ As a result, what is considered deviant changes over time
and can vary significantly across cultures.
LABELING THEORY
STIGMA
A powerfully negative sort of master status that affects a person’s
self-concept, social identity, and interactions with others. A mark of
disgrace associated with a circumstance, quality, or person.
Sociologist Edwin Lemert expanded on the concepts of labeling
theory and identified two types of deviance that affect identity
formation.
Primary deviance is a violation of norms that do not result in any
long-term effects on the individual’s self-image or interactions with
others.
Secondary deviance occurs when a person’s self-concept and
behavior begin to change after his or her actions are labeled as
deviant by members of society.
Master status or Career deviance - Secondary deviance can be so
strong that it bestows to an individual. A master status is a label that
describes the chief characteristic of an individual.
◦ Labeling theory was created by Howard Becker in 1963.
Labeling theory takes the view that people become
criminals when labeled as such and when they accept the
label as a personal identity.
◦ SHAMING - It is defined as social disapproval that has the
intention of the effect of invoking remorse in the person
being shamed by others who become aware of the
shaming
◦ John Braithwaite (1989) distinguished two types of
shaming:
1. Disintegrative shaming- wherein crime/criminal acts are
defined as bad; the society then excludes the offender
2. Reintegrative shaming- labels the act but not the person
who acted it. “He has done a bad thing, “not “he is a bad
person
TWO (2) TYPES OF LABELING
Retrospective Labeling-
Interpreting someone’s past considering some present deviance.
Projective labeling-
Using a deviant identity to predict future action and projecting by
imagining what he/she might do in the future.
ETHNOMEDOLOGY PERSPECTIVE
◦ Phenomenological sociology holds that reality is an
intersubjectively shared and socially constructed
phenomenon.
◦ People act based on the meaning that events and others
have for them.
◦ Drawing upon the understandings developed by Alfred
Schutz (1962) phenomenological sociology focuses on
describing the subjective reality understood to be reality
by members of society.
◦ Schutz suggested that members= subjective experience is
a shared reality which draws upon a common stock of
knowledge.
◦ Ethnomethodology is the study of how people create and
use shared methods to make sense of the social world
around them.
◦ It examines the everyday practices people use to interact
with each other and build social relationships.
◦ Initially developed in the 1960s, ethnomethodology was
one of the first sociology theories to focus on how people
make sense of their everyday lives.
◦ It challenged traditional sociological assumptions about
how people should behave and offered a new perspective
on how humans operate in society.
CONFLICT THEORY
◦ A term associated with the theories of Karl Marx, in which
different groups in society compete over limited resources.
◦ Conflict theory holds that social order is maintained by
domination and power, rather than by consensus and
conformity.
◦ Marxist conflict theory sees society as divided along lines
of economic class between the proletarian working class
and the bourgeois ruling class.
◦ Bourgeoisie
◦ a group that represented members of society who
hold the majority of the wealth and the means.
◦ Proletariat
◦ those considered working class or poor
FEMINIST PERSPECTIVE
◦ Feminist perspective highlights the social issues that are
often overlooked or misidentified by already present social
theories. It analyses women’s experiences of gender
subordination and identifies the underlying causes of
gender oppression. It closely studies women’s social roles,
interests and experiences at both micro and macro level.
◦ Feminist perspective uses conflict theory to examine the
reinforcement of gender roles and inequalities.
 ◦ The proponents of feminist perspective argue that the
relations between women and men cannot be reduced to
differences in biological functions. Gender is much more
than biological distinctions. It consists of assumptions and
social expectations regarding what it means to be a male
or a female.
◦ Liberal feminists believe that women’s unequal access to
social, political and economic institutions causes their
oppression.
◦ Radical feminists believe that oppression is rooted in
sexuality. According to them, sexism is the oldest form of
oppression.
◦ Marxists and Socialist feminists consider capitalism to be
the main cause of gender inequality. They believe that
capitalist system exploits the reproductive labour of
women.
◦ Psychoanalytic feminism uses Freudian theories to explain
gender inequalities. They argue that early childhood
experiences shape women’s psyche and create differences
between men and women. They believe that we must
work to create an androgynous society. It means that
there is clear lines between gender roles or there is no sex
role differentiation.
CRITICAL PERSPECTIVE
◦ It is a normative approach that judges the domination
problem. It also questions power and exploitation, and
struggle for a just society.
◦ Taking a critical perspective involves adopting a viewpoint
that asks questions about the rationale and legitimacy of
something.
◦ To have a critical perspective on a subject means to be
able to compare and discuss different attitudes towards
and interpretations of that subject. Also, to understand
the background of those attitudes and interpretations: the
attitudes behind this attitude’ the ideas behind this idea.
To have a critical perspective requires a fair amount of
reading on a subject.
◦ Critical perspective regards deviance as conflict, generally
as a rational adjustment to the contradictions of the
capitalist social and economic system.
CHICAGO PERSPECTIVE
◦ Criminology
◦ Judy grew up in a rough neighborhood. There was lots of
crime, and poverty was very common. But now, she lives
in a really nice neighborhood, with very little crime. Most
people leave their doors open, and don't worry about the
consequences.
◦ Judy wonders what makes people turn to a life of crime.
And, why is her old neighborhood more filled with crime
than her new one?
◦ Criminology is the study of crime and punishment.
Criminologists try to answer the question, 'Why do people
commit crimes?' Like Judy, criminologists are interested in
why some people commit crimes and others don't. Let's
look closer at one school of thought in criminology - the
Chicago School - and one of its main theories, social
disorganization theory.
SOCIAL DISORGANIZATION THEORY
◦ Social disorganization theory states that crime in a
neighbourhood is a result of the weakening of traditional
social bonds. This weakening of bonds results in ‘social
disorgnization’.
◦ Social bonds that might be weakened
include: family connections, community connections,
and religious connections.
◦ The theory further states that disorganization can be
pinpointed to certain specific areas and demographics. The
theory’s founders highlighted certain high-risk
demographics such as: areas with a high proportion
of migrant workers, and areas with a high proportion
of blue-collar workers.
GENDER PERSPECTIVE
◦ The gender perspective is an approach that makes it
possible to study and address phenomena, links, activities,
processes and social systems related to the sex-gender
system.
◦ The gender perspective focuses particularly on gender-
based differences in status and power, and considers how
such discrimination shapes the immediate needs, as well
as the long-term interests, of women and men.
◦ In a policy context, taking a gender perspective is a
strategy for making women’s as well as men’s concerns
and experiences an integral dimension of the design,
implementation, monitoring and evaluation of policies and
programmes in all political, economic and societal spheres,
so that women and men benefit equally and inequality is
not perpetuated.
PSYCHOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE
◦ Focus on individual abnormality
◦ Reckless and Dinitz’s containment theory links delinquency
to weak conscience
◦ See deviance as a result of “unsuccessful socialization”.
◦ Emphasizes on the role of parents and early childhood
experiences or even behavioral conditioning in producing a
deviant behavior
ABNORMAL PSYCHOLOGY
Branch of psychology that studies unusual patterns of behavior,
emotion and thought, which may or may not be understood as
precipitating a mental disorder.
WHAT IS AN ABNORMAL BEHAVIOR
 ◦ Can refer to any action or behavior that is unusual, but is
most commonly used to describe the actions and
behaviors associated with psychological conditions.
◦ It is socially unacceptable or violates social norms.
MALADAPTIVE BEHAVIOR
◦ Frequently used as an indicator of abnormality or mental
dysfunction, since its assessment is relatively free from
subjectivity.
◦ SOME EXAMPLES
◦ Avoiding situations because you have unrealistic fears may
initially reduce your anxiety, but it is non-productive in
alleviating the actual problem in the long term.
◦ Antisocial behaviors, such as breaking laws;
◦ Failing to respect the needs and boundaries of others;
◦ Injuring or abusing others, either verbally or physically.
CAUSES
◦ In some cases, organic, meaning that they stem from an
imbalance of chemicals in the brain or from another
similar physical condition.
◦ These conditions often are controlled with prescription
medications, such as antipsychotics and anti-anxiety
medications, but many see some improvement from long-
term therapy and diet and lifestyle changes.
◦ It may also stem from psychological conditions.
◦ There is some evidence that some such conditions are
inherited genetically, but many are caused by
environmental factors.
◦ These factors could be long-term or may be a single event,
and they can cause behavioral repercussions in childhood
or adulthood
TREATMENT/ THERAPY
◦ Once the abnormal behaviors and their causes are
identified, the work of modifying behavior can begin.
◦ Therapy can involve group or one-on-one sessions that
might occur in either a residential or an outpatient basis.
◦ Work could include facing fears, finding ways to empower
the self, and learning or relearning to behave
appropriately.
◦ Therapies also may be augmented with short or long-term
medications as deemed necessary by a psychiatrist or
medical doctor.
Overview on the Different Types of Emotional/Behavioral
Disorders
ANXIETY DISORDER
◦ For people with an anxiety disorder, the anxiety does not
go away and can get worse over time.
◦ The symptoms can interfere with daily activities such as
job performance, schoolwork, and relationships.
◦ There are several types of anxiety disorders, including
generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, social anxiety
disorder, and various phobia-related disorders.
SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS
◦ Generalized Anxiety Disorder
◦ Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) usually involves a
persistent feeling of anxiety or dread, which can interfere
with daily life. People living with GAD experience frequent
anxiety for months, if not years.
◦ Symptoms of GAD include:
◦ Feeling restless, wound-up, or on-edge
◦ Being easily fatigued
◦ Having difficulty concentrating
◦ Being irritable
◦ Having headaches, muscle aches, stomach-aches, or
unexplained pains
◦ Difficulty controlling feelings of worry
◦ Having sleep problems, such as difficulty falling or staying
asleep
◦ Panic Disorder
◦ People with panic disorder have frequent and unexpected
panic attacks. Panic attacks are sudden periods of intense
fear, discomfort, or sense of losing control even when
there is no clear danger or trigger.
◦ During a panic attack, a person may experience:
◦ Pounding or racing heart
◦ Sweating
◦ Trembling or tingling
◦ Chest pain
◦ Feelings of impending doom
◦ Feelings of being out of control
Social Anxiety Disorder
◦ Social anxiety disorder is an intense, persistent fear of
being watched and judged by others.
People with social anxiety disorder may experience:
◦ Blushing, sweating, or trembling
◦ Pounding or racing heart
 ◦ Stomachaches ◦ Hypomanic

◦ Rigid body posture or speaking with an overly soft voice ◦ Manic without psychotic symptoms

◦ Difficulty making eye contact or being around people they ◦ Manic with psychotic symptoms
don’t know
◦ Mild/mod depression
◦ Feelings of self-consciousness or fear that people will
judge them negatively ◦ Severe depression, without psychotic symptoms

Phobia-related disorders ◦ Severe depression, with psychotic symptoms

◦ A phobia is an intense fear of—or aversion to—specific ◦ Mixed

objects or situations. Although it can be realistic to be ◦ In remission
anxious in some circumstances, the fear people with
phobias feel is out of proportion to the actual danger
caused by the situation or object.

People with a phobia:

◦ May have an irrational or excessive worry about

encountering the feared object or situation

◦ Take active steps to avoid the feared object or situation

◦ Experience immediate intense anxiety upon encountering

the feared object or situation

◦ Endure unavoidable objects and situations with intense

anxiety

RISK FACTORS
BIPOLAR DISORDER
◦ Researchers are finding that both genetic and
environmental factors contribute to the risk of developing ◦ Further divided into bipolar I & bipolar II disorders
an anxiety disorder.
• Bipolar I- involves severe depression and severe mania
The risk factors for each type of anxiety disorder vary. However,
• Bipolar II- involves severe depression and hypomania
some general risk factors include:

◦ Shyness or feeling distressed or nervous in new situations

in childhood

◦ Exposure to stressful and negative life or environmental

events

◦ A history of anxiety or other mental disorders in biological

relatives

◦ Anxiety symptoms can be produced or aggravated by:

◦ Some physical health conditions, such as thyroid problems

or heart arrhythmia

◦ Caffeine or other substances/medications

◦ If you think you may have an anxiety disorder, getting a
physical examination from a health care provider may help
them diagnose your symptoms and find the right
treatment.
BIPOLAR DISORDER
◦ Earlier known as manic depressive psychosis (MDP). This
episode can occur in any sequence. The current episode in
bipolar mood disorder is specified as one of the following
(ICD- 10):
CONDUCT DISORDER
◦ Conduct disorder is a mental health condition
characterized by a behavioral pattern in which the child
breaks age-appropriate social norms and rules.
◦ Conduct disorder is a condition in which an individual
displays an ongoing pattern of uncooperative, rebellious,
and aggressive behavior toward people in authority.
 ◦ It is consistent and repetitive, occurring frequently enough
that it interferes with the child’s education, family life, and
social life.
SYMPTOMS OF CONDUCT DISORDER
◦ Symptoms of conduct disorder vary depending on the age
of the child and whether the disorder is mild, moderate, or
severe. In general, symptoms of conduct disorder fall into
four general categories:
◦ • Aggressive behavior: These are behaviors that threaten
or cause physical harm and may include fighting, bullying,
being cruel to others or animals, using weapons, and
forcing another into sexual activity.
◦ • Destructive behavior: This involves intentional
destruction of property such as arson and vandalism.
◦ • Deceitful behavior: This may include repeated lying,
shoplifting, or breaking into homes or cars to steal.
◦ • Violation of rules: This involves going against accepted
rules of society or engaging in behavior that is not
appropriate for the person's age.
What causes Conduct Disorder?
◦ Biological
◦ Genetics
◦ Environmental
◦ Psychological
◦ Social
EATING DISORDER
◦ Eating disorders are a range of psychological conditions
that cause unhealthy eating habits to develop.
◦ They might start with an obsession with food, body
weight, or body shape.
◦ In severe cases, eating disorders can cause serious health
consequences and may even result in death if left
untreated.
◦ Those with eating disorders can have a variety of
symptoms.
◦ Eating disorders are mental health conditions marked by
an obsession with food or body shape.
◦ They can affect anyone but are most prevalent among
young women.
◦ CAUSES OF EATING DISORDERS
◦ • Genetics • Brain biology • Personality traits • Cultural
ideals
OBSESSIVE-COMPULSIVE PERSONALITY DISORDER
◦ SIX MAJOR TYPES OF EATING DISORDERS:
◦ The most well-known eating disorder is Anorexia Nervosa.
People who have this eating disorder see themselves as
overweight, even if they are extremely underweight. They
tend to always monitor their weight, and they are very
strict in avoiding certain types of foods. They always
severely restrict their calories.
◦ Another well-known eating disorder is BULIMIA NERVOSA.
It is characterized by frequently eating unusually large
amounts of food in a specific period. During the binge, the
person cannot control or stop how much they are eating.
After that, they would feel gut discomfort, so to
compensate with that, they would then attempt to purge
or vomit for the calories they consumed.
◦ Another common eating disorder is BINGE EATING
DISORDER. It usually happens during adolescence and
develops later on until early adulthood. The symptoms of
this disorder are similar to bulimia eating disorder.
◦ PICA is an eating disorder that involves in taking or craves
for things that are not considered food like dirt, soil, ice,
chalk, cloth, pebbles, paper, and others alike.
◦ RUMINATION DISORDER Another newly recognized eating
disorder is Rumination disorder. It is characterized by
vomiting the food that they previously chewed or
swallowed, then re-chews it, and then either swallow it
again or spit it out.
◦ ARFID or Avoidant/Restrictive food intake disorder ARFID
eating disorder is previously known as “feeding disorder of
infancy and early childhood.” Individuals who have this
eating disorder experience dislike for food because of its
specific texture, smell, taste, color, and temperature.
CAUSES OF EATING DISORDER
◦ EDs are complex disorders, influenced by a facet of
factors. Though the exact cause of eating disorders is
unknown, it is generally believed that a combination of
biological, psychological, and environmental
abnormalities contribute to the development of these
illnesses.
◦ Biological factors :
◦ • Irregular hormone functions • Genetics • Nutritional
deficiencies
◦ Psychological factors:
◦ • Negative body image • Poor self-esteem
◦ Environmental factors:
◦ • Dysfunctional family dynamic • Professions and careers
that promote being thin and weight loss, such as ballet and
modeling •Family and childhood traumas: childhood
sexual abuse, severe trauma • Cultural and peer pressure
among friends and co-workers • Stressful transitions or life
changes
◦ Persons with Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder
are preoccupied with rules, regulations, and orderliness.
 ◦ Perfectionism and control for them involve openness,
flexibility, and efficiency.
People with Obsessive-Compulsive Personality disorder:
• Devoted to working and are great when it comes to making lists
and schedules which leads them to neglect social relationships often
• They have perfectionist tendencies and want always to get things
right that sometimes lead them not to complete tasks because they
get lost in the detail
• They don’t do a “sub-standard” job just to get some things done
since they are known to behave a rigid approach to things.
• They do not like to give tasks to other people because they think
that it will not be done right.
PSYCHOTIC DISORDER
◦ Psychotic disorders are a group of serious illnesses that
affect the mind. They make it hard for someone to think
clearly, make good judgments, respond emotionally,
communicate effectively, understand reality, and behave
appropriately.
◦ When symptoms are severe, people with psychotic
disorders have trouble staying in touch with reality and
often are unable to handle daily life. But even severe
psychotic disorders usually can be treated.
TYPES
Schizophrenia:
People with this illness have changes in behavior and other
symptoms -- such as delusions and hallucinations -- that last longer
than 6 months. It usually affects them at work or school, as well as
their relationships.
◦ Schizoaffective disorder:
◦ People have symptoms of both schizophrenia and a mood
disorder, such as depression or bipolar disorder.
◦ Schizophreniform disorder:
◦ This includes symptoms of schizophrenia, but the
symptoms last for a shorter time: between 1 and 6
months.
◦ Brief psychotic disorder:
◦ People with this illness have a sudden, short period of
psychotic behavior, often in response to a very stressful
event, such as a death in the family. Recovery is often
quick -- usually less than a month.
Delusional disorder
The key symptom is having a delusion (a false, fixed belief) involving
a real-life situation that could be true but isn't, such as being
followed, being plotted against, or having a disease. The delusion
lasts for at least 1 month.
◦ Shared psychotic disorder (also called folie à deux):
◦ This illness happens when one person in a relationship has
a delusion and the other person in the relationship adopts
it, too.
◦ Substance-induced psychotic disorder:
◦ This condition is caused by the use of or withdrawal from
drugs, such as hallucinogens and crack cocaine, that cause
hallucinations, delusions, or confused speech.
◦ Psychotic disorder due to another medical condition:
◦ Hallucinations, delusions, or other symptoms may happen
because of another illness that affects brain function, such
as a head injury or brain tumor.
◦ Paraphrenia:
◦ This condition has symptoms similar to schizophrenia or a
delusional disorder and is not formally recognized in the
DSM V. It starts late in life, when people are elderly and
may be related to neurologic problems.
SYMPTOMS
◦ Hallucinations means seeing, hearing, or feeling things
that don’t exist.
◦ Delusions are false beliefs that don’t go away even after
they've been shown to be false. For example, a person
who is certain their food is poisoned, even if someone has
shown them that the food is fine, has a delusion.
◦ Other possible symptoms of psychotic illnesses include:
◦ Disorganized or incoherent speech
◦ Confused thinking
◦ Strange, possibly dangerous behavior
◦ Slowed or unusual movements
◦ Loss of interest in personal hygiene
◦ Loss of interest in activities
◦ Problems at school or work and with relationships
◦ Cold, detached manner with the inability to express
emotion
◦ Mood swings or other mood symptoms, such as
depression or mania
TREATMENT
Most psychotic disorders are treated with a combination of
medications and psychotherapy, which is a type of counseling.
Medication:
The main type of drug that doctors prescribe to treat psychotic
disorders are “antipsychotics.” Although these medicines aren’t a
cure, they are effective in managing the most troubling symptoms of
psychotic disorders, such as delusions, hallucinations, and thinking
problems.
Psychotherapy:

There are different types of counseling -- including individual, group,

and family therapy – that can help someone who has a psychotic
disorder.

Most people with psychotic disorders are treated as outpatients,

meaning they don’t live in institutions. But sometimes people need
to be hospitalized, such as if they have severe symptoms, are in
danger of hurting themselves or others, or can’t care for themselves
because of their illness.

RESPONSES IN DEALING AND MANAGING WITH EMOTIONAL AND

BEHAVIORAL DISORDERS

◦ Many social work practitioners including mental health

social workers, assess, diagnose and treat mental illnesses,
behavioral disorders and emotional issues. Some examples
include:

◦ Depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder and other mental

health conditions

◦ Child abuse, neglect and behavioral problems

◦ Addiction, substance abuse and alcoholism

◦ Significant life events, including divorce, bereavement and

terminal illnesses

◦ Coping with unemployment, homelessness and long-term

disabilities

◦ Social workers support individuals, families and

communities as they seek to overcome challenges that
negatively impact individual and community well-being.

◦ Since each client has different needs and preferences,

social work professionals need to focus on cultivating
strong relationships built on trust, transparency and
compassion.

◦ This is particularly important when treating people who

have a diagnosed mental illness, as they may be more
sensitive to certain experiences and forms of
communication. While social workers of every type are
concerned with mental health, some roles come with
specialized requirements that fall outside the norm.

◦ Mental health social workers engage mostly with clients

struggling to overcome addictive behaviors, such as drug
or alcohol abuse, or mental health conditions, such as
eating disorders, clinical depression, and post-traumatic
stress disorder (PDSD) among others. Common
responsibilities may include the following:

◦ Establishing rapport and building relationships with clients

◦ Assessing clients’ mental health needs

◦ Researching mental health resources for clients, such as

substance abuse rehabilitation programs and suicide
prevention resources

◦ Providing clients with information about resources based

on their specific needs