Humanistic psychology is a psychological perspective that emphasizes the study of the whole person (know as holism). Humanistic psychologists look at human behavior, not only through the eyes of the observer, but through the eyes of the person doing the behaving. Under this definition of abnormality, a person’s trait, thinking or behavior is classified as abnormal if it is rare or statistically unusual. The decision of where to start the “abnormal” classification is arbitrary. Who decides what is statistically rare, and how do they decide? For example, if an IQ of 70 is the cut-off point, how can we justify saying someone with 69 is abnormal, and someone with 70 is normal? Nevertheless, psychoanalysis has been greatly contributory to psychology in that it has encouraged many modern theorists to modify it for the better, using its basic principles, but eliminating its major flaws. Humanistic Perspective

Research doesn’t appear out of nowhere and what particular Psychologists investigate isn’t a random event. However, this definition fails to distinguish between desirable and undesirable behavior. For example, obesity is statistically normal but not associated with healthy or desirable. Conversely, a high IQ is statistically abnormal but may well be regarded as highly desirable. Psychology is the scientific study of behavior and mental processes. It is a science because psychologists conduct research based on the scientific method. [11] The five major psychological perspectives are biological, psychodynamic, behavioral, cognitive, and humanistic, and provide different lenses through which phenomena are explained and analyzed. The human brain was designed by the same natural forces that shaped other natural phenomena, but it is a brain designed to think, learn, and construct cultures. To isolate or ignore any of theseBehaviorism states that all behavior (including abnormal) is learned from the environment (nurture) and that all behavior that has been learned can also be ‘unlearnt’ (which is how abnormal behavior is treated).

Olivia Guy-Evans is a writer and associate editor for Simply Psychology. She has previously worked in healthcare and educational sectors. Many rare behaviors or characteristics (e.g., left-handedness) have no bearing on normality or abnormality. Some characteristics are regarded as abnormal even though they are quite frequent. For example, drunk driving was once considered acceptable but is now seen as socially unacceptable, whereas homosexuality has gone the other way. The fact that there are different perspectives represents the complexity and richness of human (and animal) behavior. A scientific approach, such as Behaviorism or cognitive psychology, tends to ignore the subjective (i.e., personal) experiences that people have. Many biological psychologists have concentrated on abnormal behavior and have tried to explain it. For example, biological psychologists believe that schizophrenia is affected by levels of dopamine (a neurotransmitter).The behavioral approach emphasizes the environment and how abnormal behavior is acquired through classical conditioning, operant conditioning, and social learning. According to psychological studies, internet trolls are narcissistic, sadistic, and psychopathic. [17] You may wonder why there are so many different psychological approaches and whether one approach is correct and another wrong. According to this approach, the more satisfied these criteria are, the healthier the individual is. Limitations It’s the gender that gives us a sense of personal identity as male or female (Wade and Tavris, 1994). An even stronger argument for the social construction of gender comes from studies of societies where there are more than two genders.

An aspect of psychoanalysis is Freud’s theory of psychosexual development. It shows how early experiences affect adult personality. Stimulation of different areas of the body is important as the child progresses through the important developmental stages. Too much or too little can have bad consequences later. There are several different ways in which it is possible to define ‘abnormal’ as opposed to our ideas of what is ‘normal.’ Statistical Infrequency Therefore, in conclusion, there are so many different perspectives in psychology to explain the different types of behavior and give different angles. No one perspective has explanatory powers over the rest. One 19th century aristocrat, the Duke of Portland, was so shy that he built a 15-mile-long labyrinth of tunnels under his home so that he could avoid his staff. [13]Norms are expected ways of behaving in a society according to the majority, and those members of a society who do not think and behave like everyone else break these norms and are often defined as abnormal. When a person finds a situation difficult to accept, they will make up a logical reason why it has happened. For example, a person may explain a natural disaster as “God’s will”. Reaction Formation Biological psychologists explain behaviors in neurological terms, i.e., the physiology and structure of the brain and how this influences behavior. It is normally used in reference to hatred, anger, and aggression, rather than more positive impulses, and it is the Freudian explanation for many of our feelings of inferiority, guilt, and depression.