Mental Disorders-Causes, Nature, and Treatment Essay Example for Free

Mental Disorders-Causes, Nature, and Treatment Essay James is 35 years old and is a successful salesman. He has never married and has no children. His career focus often makes him appear to be a â€Å"workaholic.† Lately, he has begun to feel extremely dissatisfied, lonely, and bored. He thinks often of quitting, selling everything he owns, and taking off. Is James crazy? Is he depressed? Kay is a young and very attractive high-school teacher who is involved romantically with one of her students. She knows this is illegal, immoral, and unethical, but she continues this dangerous behavior. Is Kay mentally ill? Peter washes his hands at least 25 times a day. Whenever he feels anxious, he runs to the bathroom or kitchen and washes his hands to lower his anxiety level. Is Peters behavior abnormal? Abnormal behavior, often perceived as a sign of mental illness, is not uncommon in our society. This lesson introduces you to mental disorders, the causes of mental illness, and the treatment of mental illness. This lesson presents the following topics: †¢ What Is Abnormality? †¢ Models of Abnormality †¢ Anxiety Disorders †¢ Somatoform Disorders †¢ Dissociative Disorders †¢ Mood Disorders What Is Abnormality? What is abnormal, and just how bad can it get? If you study the portrayal of abnormality in American movies, you would probably think that a person who was identified as being psychologically abnormal could be pretty difficult to be around. In fact, for hundreds of years, people with psychological abnormalities were thought to be possessed by demons. Remember the movie, The Exorcist? Exorcism [The formal casting out of a demon through a religious ritual] became popular in the Middle Ages as a way to cast out demons. Another method used in prehistoric times to â€Å"cure† the insane was trepanning [The process of cutting holes into the skull of a living person]. In this procedure, holes were cut in the skull to provide a way for the demons to be released. During the Renaissance period, belief in demons carried through to a belief in witchcraft. Mentally ill people were called witches and were often put to death. These executions were often carried out by burning at the stake. Thankfully, psychopathology—the study of abnormal behavior—has come a long way over the centuries, and attitudes toward and treatment of mental illness have also changed. Definitions of Abnormal Behavior It is difficult to define abnormal behavior. One way is to use the statistical definitions that frequently occurring behavior is normal and behavior that is rare is abnormal. But these definitions dont work for every situation. Another way to define abnormality is behavior that goes against the norms or standards of society. But going against social norms is not always regarded as an abnormality, especially in the case of championing social or political causes. In addition, behavior that may be unacceptable in one culture may be completely acceptable in another. The social or environmental setting of a persons behavior is a potent factor in the determination of â€Å"abnormality.† Joan hates to go to large parties where she doesnt know anyone. Unfortunately, her husbands business often holds large gatherings, and spouses are expected to attend. Joan delays getting ready until the last minute and then spends the evening feeling uncomfortable because she doesnt look as â€Å"well-put together† as some of the other women. She hesitates to mingle because of her subjective discomfort [Emotional distress or emotional pain] that keeps her from meeting new people and having a good time. Ed is a 34-year-old college student. He has been in college since he was 18, taking one course after another and pursuing one degree after another. He is what some people call a â€Å"professional student.† Ed works the typical part-time student jobs and earns enough to pay for his classes and his student apartment. He once laughingly said that he couldnt stand the thought of a â€Å"real job,† but there is nothing funny about his situation. Ed is extremely anxious about the prospect of meeting the demands of daily life in the real world, and his maladaptive behaviour [Anything that does not allow a person to function within or adapt to the stresses and everyday demands of life] keeps him from achieving his potential. Both Joan and Eds behavior can be classified as â€Å"abnormal.† So, how do psychologists define abnormal behavior? It is the pattern of behavior that causes people significant distress, causes them to harm themselves or others, or harms their ability to function in daily life. Following is a list of criteria for determining abnormal behavior (at least two criteria must be met): †¢ Is the behavior unusual?†¢ Does the behavior go against social norms? †¢ Does the behavior cause the person significant subjective discomfort? †¢ Is the behavior maladaptive? †¢ Does the behavior cause the person to be a danger to themselves or others? Models of Abnormality The theories you have studied about personality can be used to help explain normal and abnormal behavior. Explaining disordered behavior depends on the model used to explain personality. The biological model [Model of explaining behavior as caused by biological changes in the chemical, structural, or genetic systems of the body] proposes that psychological disorders have a biological or medical cause. You might also hear this model called the medical, organic, or disease model. Such models point to brain trauma, infectious disease, or genetic reasons as the cause of psychological disorders. Several psychological models attempt to explain disordered behavior as forms of various emotional, behavioral, or thought-related malfunctioning. The psychoanalytic model explains disordered behavior as the result of repressing, or hiding, ones thoughts, memories, or concerns. Behaviorists believe that disordered behavior is learned behavior, just as normal behavior is learned. Cognitive psychologists [Psychologists who study the way people think, remember, and mentally organize information] believe abnormal behavior to be a result of illogical thinking patterns. Mental Disorders: Causes, Nature, and Treatments We have looked at some characteristics of abnormal behavior. Now lets see how psychologists decide what type of disorder a person has. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) was first published in 1952 to help psychology professionals diagnose disorders. It has been revised several times over the years. The DSM describes about 250 different psychological disorders based on symptoms, the path the disorder takes, and the criteria checklist. The manual divides the disorders into five categories, or axes. †¢ Type of Information: Clinical Disorders and Other Conditions That May Be a Focus of Clinical Attention. †¢ Description in Brief: Psychological disorders that impair functioning and are stressful and factors that are not disorders but that may affect functioning, such as academic or social problems. †¢ Type of Information: Personality Disorders Mental Retardation †¢ Description in Brief: Rigid, enduring, maladaptive personality patterns. †¢ Type of Information: General Medical Conditions †¢ Description in Brief: Chronic and acute illnesses and medical conditions that may have an impact on mental health. [pic][pic] †¢ Type of Information: Psychosocial and Environment Problems †¢ Description in Brief: Problems in the physical surroundings of the person that may have an impact on diagnosis, treatment, and outcome. †¢ Type of Information: Global Assessment of Functioning †¢ Description in Brief: Overall judgment of current functioning, including mental, social, and occupational.   Ã¢â‚¬ ¢ Disorders usually first diagnosed in infancy, childhood, or adolescence. For example, learning disabilities, ADHD, bedwetting, and speech disorder †¢ Delirium, dementia, amnesia, and other cognitive disorders. For example, Alzheimers, Parkinsons, and amnesia caused by physical causes †¢ Psychological disorders caused by a general medical condition. For example, personality change because of a brain tumor †¢ Substance-related disorders. For example, alcoholism and drug addiction †¢ Schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders. For example, schizophrenia, delusional disorders, hallucinations, and paranoid psychosis †¢ Mood disorders. For example, depression, mania, and bipolar disorders †¢ Anxiety disorders. For example, panic disorder, phobias, and stress disorders †¢ Somatoform disorders. For example, hypochondria and conversion disorder †¢ Factitious disorders. For example, pathological lying and Munchausen syndrome †¢ Dissociative disorders. For example, multiple personality and amnesia not caused by physical causes †¢ Sexual and gender identity disorders. For example, sexual desire disorders and paraphilias †¢ Eating disorders. For example, anorexia and bulimia †¢ Sleep disorders. For example, insomnia, sleep terror disorder, sleepwalking, and narcolepsy †¢ Impulse-control disorders not elsewhere classified. For example, kleptomania, pathological gambling, and pyromania †¢ Adjustment disorders. For example, mixed anxiety and conduct disturbances You may think you dont know anyone with a psychological disorder, but they are more common than you think. According to the National Institute on Mental Health, about 22 percent of adults over 18 suffer from a mental disorder, that is, about 44 million people in the United States. Many people who study psychology begin to believe they suffer from some type of disorder. Why? Because many psychological disorders are really ordinary variations on human behavior taken to the extreme. Now, lets take a look at some of the various categories and types of disorders. Anxiety Disorders In 2004, Raoul was vacationing with his parents in Sri Lanka when the resort they were staying in was hit by a devastating tsunami. Thousands of people died, and Raouls family barely escaped. To this day, Raoul feels extremely anxious whenever he is near the ocean or hears the sounds of waves breaking on the beach. His heart begins to pound, his hands tremble, and he wants to run away. Raouls anxiety is one of the anxiety disorders [Disorders in which the main symptom is excessive or unrealistic anxiety and fearfulness] that can be traced to a specific event. Anne feels anxious nearly all the time. She wakes up in the morning with a vague sense of dread that intensifies as the day goes on. This free-floating anxiety [Anxiety that is unrelated to any realistic, known source] is keeping her from doing her best at work and is also getting in the way of her close relationships with others. A phobia [An irrational, persistent fear of an object, situation, or social activity] is also a type of anxiety disorder. Phobias are classified as either of the following: †¢ Social phobias [Fear of interacting with others or being in social situations that might lead to a negative evaluation] †¢ Specific phobias [Fear of objects or specific situations or events] Melanie is afraid to go into large arenas. Because of her agoraphobia [Fear of being in a place or situation from which escape is difficult or impossible] she did not attend her sons high school basketball championship game. Agoraphobia keeps her from living life to the fullest. Some other common phobias and their scientific names are given below: †¢ Fear of washing and bathing: Ablutophobia †¢ Fear of spiders: Arachnophobia †¢ Fear of lightning: Ceraunophobia †¢ Fear of dirt and germs: Mysophobia †¢ Fear of snakes: Ophidiophobia †¢ Fear of darkness: Nyctophobia †¢ Fear of fire: Pyrophobia †¢ Fear of foreigners and strangers: Xenophobia †¢ Fear of animals: Zoophobia

Being and Humans in Heideggers Letter on Humanism and in his Contribut

Being and Humans in Heidegger's Letter on Humanism and in his Contributions to Philosophy ABSTRACT: Heidegger's main question, the question of Being concerning human facticity, struggles to uncover the original ground to which humans belong, a ground from which modern society tends to uproot itself through the dominance of calculative and representational thinking. What is most dangerous for Heidegger about this process is that the original ground of humans and beings in general might be covered and forgotten to the extent that humans lose completely the sense of what they truly need. The task of philosophy is to help bring back humans and beings in general to the place which they originally belong, i.e., to their most fulfilled way of being which is their proper or own [das Eigene, eigen]. The term "En-own-ment" or "Ap-propri-ation" [Er-eign-is] — the key word in Heidegger's thinking since the 1930's — marks his attempt to think more originally than metaphysics the relation between Being and humans in terms of the being "enowned" of humans through Being and in terms of the belonging of humans to Being. I will rethink the question of this relation in reference to two of Heidegger's writings, and will focus on his struggle for a proper language which would be able to say what essentially remains concealed in metaphysical language: the truth (or ground) or Being as Ereignis. a) Preliminary remarks In our age of close encounter between manifold ways of thinking, believing and behaving one fundamental question which arises is: How can one find a proper measure for human life in a world which essentially lacks a common ground? The last great philosopher who, at the brink of the era of pluralism, struggled for a common ground ... ...-1938), GA vol. 65, ed. by F.-W. v. Hermann, Frankfurt am Main 1989. (3) See especially Heidegger, GA65, section 122. (4) I have no time, here, to develop the notion of an "andersanfà ¤ngliches Denken". (5) Anklang is the name of the first of the six fugues (Fuge) into which the Beitrà ¤ge are articulated. In their interrelatedness they constitute the realm of thinking of what Heidegger calls the transition from the first (Greek) beginning of Western history to the other beginning, which the thinking of Ereignis is meant to prepare. (6) See GA 9:323, where Heidegger says that Ek-sistenz is "das Stehen in der Lichtung des Seins". See also p. 350. (7) Unfortunately, I will have no time, here, to develop the question of the relation between humans and gods. (8) Heidegger moves, in the Beitrà ¤ge towards a radical simultaneity of beyng and beings.

Value Chain of Tesco

â€Å"To further the analysis of competitive advantage, Michael Porter introduced the value chain as a tool to examine the activities of a business. † As seen in figure 2, â€Å"Porter distinguished a firm’s support activities from its operational or primary activities. †(Book) [pic][pic] Support Activities Firm Infrastructure Human Resource Management Peta Hay, Director of the Tesco Academy, commented: â€Å"We believe it is more important than ever to invest in our people as Tesco continues to expand both geographically and into new business sectors.Tesco has a proven track record of both nurturing internal talent and successfully attracting external senior executives†. (7) Technology Development Procurement Primary Activities Inbound Logistics The overall cost leadership strategic management of Tesco is exhibited in its lean and agile inbound logistics function. Drawing upon Abeysinghe (2010), the company uses its leading market position and economies o f scope as key bargaining powers to achieve low costs from its suppliers.The analysts have also highlighted the constant upgrading of their ordering system, approved vendor lists, and in-store processes to induce effectiveness and efficiency into the company’s inbound logistics operations. Operations Management Tesco has been praised by a number of supply chain management critics for its effective use of IT systems that facilitate the company’s low cost leadership strategy. According to Tesco (2010), the company has invested over ? 76 million in streamlining its operations through their Tesco Digital program, which is a third generation ERP solution for the company. The company has achieved ? 50 million in increased profitability during 2009 alone due to the introduction of this system. This company -wide ERP system has also facilitated the minimisation of stock holdings within the company. Outbound Logistics Tesco holds leadership position in online and offline food r etail segments, which is due to its efficient and effective outbound logistics. Drawing upon Mintel (2010), the company has developed a range of store formats and types, which are strategically placed to achieve maximum customer exposure. These formats include Express, Metro, Superstores, Extra and Homeplus, which are segmented according to the target population.Marketing and Sales Loyalty programs like Tesco Clubcard are being introduced through information technology advances which dissuade the customers from switching over to their competitors. Tesco has introduced its Greener Living Scheme to give consumers advice on environmental issues, including how to reduce food waste and their carbon footprint when preparing meals . Services Tesco has been pursuing a dual strategy of cost leadership and differentiation, which has led to an increased importance placed on customer service.Drawing upon Keynote (2010), this dual strategy is exhibited through the development of self-service kio sks, financial services, focused direct marketing and promotions. In order to put Tesco’s value chain analysis into perspective, it should be noted that despite cost leadership strategy the company has been able to create a high degree of value in comparison with its key competitors. The relative analysis of the value created by the big four supermarket chains, i. e. , Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons has been provided as follows:

Contract and Chicago Medical School Essay

Facts: In December 1973 Robert Steinberg, the plaintiff, applied for admissions to the Chicago Medical School. He paid an application fee of $15, but his application was rejected. After being rejected he filed against the school, claiming that they did not evaluate his application according to the academic entrance criteria printed in the school’s bulletin. Steinberg argues that the school based its decision primarily on nonacademic consideration such as family connections between the applicant and his family to donate large sums of money to the school. Steinberg assets that by evaluating his application to these unpublished criteria, the school breached the contract it had created when it accepted his application fee. The trail court granted the defendant’s motion to dismiss, and Steinberg appealed. Issue: What is a contract? Rules: Mutual Assent- the parties to a contract must by show of words or condut that they have agreed to enter a contract. The usual method of mutual assent is by offering and acceptance. Consideration- each party to a contract must intentionally exchange a legal benefit or incur a legal deteriment as an inducement to the other party to make a renturn change. THIS FOR THAT basically. Legality of subject matter- the purpose of a contract must be not criminal, tortuous, or otherwise against public policy Capacity- the parties to a contract must have mental understanding of what they are entering into. Application: The contract that Steinberg and Chicago Medical School entered into meets the four requirements for a contractual contract. Therefore it is binding and legally enforceable. Conclusion: The court agreed with Steinberg’s position and that both parties did indeed enter a enforceable contract and under this contract by accepting the application fee the school must evaluate give him valuable consideration and his application evaluation was to be based on the criteria stated in the school’s bulletin. Steinberg accepted the school’s promises in good faith and he was.

Athens And Sparta Essays

Athens And Sparta Essays Athens And Sparta Essay Athens And Sparta Essay While here are many differences that distinguish Athens and Sparta, both share a few resemblances. To start with, Athens and Sparta shared the same religion of Polytheism. Despite Athens having Athena as their main God who was adulated more profoundly than the other Gods. As well as with Sparta, they believed more heavily in Heraclites because Sparta believed he was their founder. Both worshiped all the Greek Gods, some were just more important for Athens and Sparta. In addition to religion, both Athens and Sparta shared the comparison of allowing slavery. Though Athens was a democracy, half of their population were slaves. It is projected that the vast majority of Athenians owned at least one slave. Sprats populace of slaves was more than 10 times the populace of Sprats citizens. The reason for Sprats ridiculous number of slaves is based that the slaves (or helots as Spartan called them) were essential to Sprats food production because the slaves handled it all. Regardless of Athens and Sparta sharing many similarities they also share many differences in their lifestyles since both developed parallel from one another. To start with, Athens prioritize education more than Sparta. Schooling was taken very seriously in Athens as men were taught in philosophy, math, science and more. Poetry, music and drama was also greatly appreciated in their instruction. A good education was the key to Athens success in Greek culture. In contrast to Ethanes value for education, Sparta didnt take education as seriously. When boys turned 7, they were shipped off to a military school until they were 20 to train for the army. The season that Sparta didnt have as big of an education standard as Athens was because they prioritize their military a lot more, which made their army stronger than Athens. Also both Athens and Sparta differ in women rights. For example, in Athens women are valued only for bearing children. Although women were not considered citizens in Athens, they were higher socially ranked than slaves but below men. Women were not allowed to own property which included lands, slaves, jewelry and clothing and were not premised to do sports. They also had to be accompanied by a slave because they were not permitted to leave home alone. Unlike in Athens, where women had no rights, in Sparta women did have a few. Women were allowed to play sport: and move around Sparta freely. For example, though women werent trainee in the traditional Sparta sports such as heavy weight lifting and disk throwing Women were trained in gymnastics to maintain their strength. The reason being, Spartan hoped that if their women were strong they could pass that trait down to their future child.

Apartheid Era Blacks Act No 67 of 1952

Apartheid Era Blacks Act No 67 of 1952 Definition: The Blacks (Abolition of Passes and Co-ordination of Documents) Act No 67 of 1952 (commenced 11 July) repealed early laws, which differed from province to province, relating to the carrying of passes by Black male workers (e.g. the Native Labour Regulation Act of 1911) and instead required all black persons over the age of 16 in all provinces to carry a reference book at all times. They were required by law to produce the book when requested by any member of the police or by an administrative official. The pass included a photograph, carried details of place of origin, employment record, tax payments, and encounters with the police. A special court system was devised to enforce the pass law – people appearing at such commissioners courts were considered guilty until they had proven their innocence. During the 60s, 70s and 80s around 500,000 Blacks were arrested each year, their cases tried (mainly uncontested), and in the 60s fined or sentenced to a short prison term. From the early 70s the convicted were deported to Bantustans instead (under the Admission of Persons to the Republic regulation Act No 59 of 1972). By the mid 80s, by which time almost 20 million people had been arrested (and tried, fined, imprisoned, or deported), the pass law had become increasingly difficult to enforce and it was abandoned. Repealed by the Identification Act No 72 of 1986. Also Known As: Natives (Abolition of Passes and Co-ordination of Documents) Act No 67 of 1952

American products vs foreign products Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

American products vs foreign products - Essay Example About 63 million light trucks and cars were produced in 2005 all over the world. of these, 11524000 were produced by America, 5543000 were produced by Germany, and 10064000 were produced by Japan . It may come as a surprise to many but it is true that a lot of vehicles made in America are designated like â€Å"foreign† whereas a lot of vehicles produced in Canada or Mexico are considered â€Å"domestic†. This can fundamentally be attributed to the requirement of the federal regulations of making a domestic vehicle with a minimum of 75 per cent of the domestic parts. Therefore, manufacturers in America frequently forward the parts to Canada or Mexico in order to produce the cars, though they hold the status of domestic cars by law. On the other hand, Nissan, Honda, Hyundai, Toyota, Mercedes-Benz, and BMW produce their cars in America making use of American plants aided by American-based research and development facilities and with American workers, and yet, they are cons idered as foreign since the percentage of domestic parts in them is less than 75. At comparable equipment and size, American cars save the buyer significant amount of money as compared to the Japanese car. However, when the comparison is made with respect to the whole life of car, Japanese cars prove much more cost effective than the American cars.