I learnt a lot about abnormal psychology from this module. I think the area that I found most interesting was the topic of anxiety disorders, as I know a number of people that suffer from a variety of different anxiety disorders and it was useful to understand more about them. For me, I felt that it was particularly important to learn more about panic attacks and what they are. Panic attacks can often be seen as a sign of weakness to the outside world, but reading the case study about how they actually feel really illuminated how scary and real they are. From a psychological perspective, it was also useful to understand the different causes of anxiety disorders, and I knew little about the biological contributions to the development of anxiety, so this was really useful to me in terms of future study and understanding the cause of the problem.
Another important aspect of abnormal psychology that was made hugely evident through this module was that there are cultural influences on the development of disorders. I think it is important to understand that culture has an impact on the way different individuals experience mental health problems, and by doing this further research can be conducted into the biological and psychological elements of these psychologies. The cultural impact is often overlooked in favor of more scientific approaches, in my opinion, and I thought the inclusion of it in this module was really important to my understanding of how abnormal psychology develops and is viewed in different cultures across the world. Durand & Harrison noted that the diagnosis of anxiety is “typically based on the Western conceptualization of each disorder”, but that this “may lead to lower numbers of people in other countries meeting diagnostic criteria “(2016, p121). In this sense, culture has an important impact on psychological research.
I think this new knowledge is going to have a big impact on my emotions, thoughts, attitudes, and behavior. It has made me more open-minded and understanding of the different mental health issues that people suffer from, and the way that they are experienced. From this perspective, I think studying this module has made me more empathetic to the needs of people with abnormal psychologies, and more aware of the different ways that they may (or may not) respond to treatment. Understanding things like triggers for anxiety, for example, has already made me more conscious of how I talk to people and the way that I post online, as I am trying to avoid exacerbating problems for people that are suffering conditions like generalized anxiety disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder.
The new knowledge will also have an impact on the way that I think and believe. I am more aware of the world around me and the differences between people, and this has caused me to think and behave in a slightly different way. Aside from being more understanding, as noted above, I am also trying to learn more about some of the disorders that I found most interesting and relevant, so this module has also made me a better student of psychology. I am also now more conscious of my own attitudes and emotions, as I am relating them to information I have learnt and am trying to use this information to better myself as a person. I think I also have more insight into the way that I am and the reasons behind some of my thought patterns, which is really interesting and in some ways quite useful in trying to control my emotions. Overall, this module gave me a lot of new information that I am going to incorporate into my daily life and future study.
References
Durand, V. M., & Barlow, D. H. (2016). Essentials of Abnormal Psychology (7th ed.). New York: Cengage Learning.
