Historical Perspectives Psy 410

Historical Perspectives of Abnormal Psychology

University of Phoenix

PSY/410

Historical Perspectives of Abnormal Psychology

Abnormal psychology, also known as psychopathology is a field that focuses on how abnormal behavior is defined, explained, treated, and classified. The origin of abnormal psychology dates back to thousands of years ago and has encountered challenges to defining and classifying normal and abnormal behavior. Over time abnormal behavior has evolved into a scientific discipline from theoretical models that contributed to the development of abnormal normal, such as sociocultural, psychosocial, and biological/medical theoretical models.

Origins of Abnormal Psychology

For thousands of years, people tried to understand abnormal or unusual behavior. Behavior out of the ordinary was thought to be a result to supernatural, biological, or psychological reasons. It was believed that a person was conducting abnormal behavior because of demons, evil spirits, changes in the moon and stars, or other divine forces (ScumDoctor, 2013). During the ancient times, people lacked the knowledge of possessing reliability and validity about mental disorders to classify, explain, and treat unusual behaviors.

The ability to define and classify normal and abnormal behavior has challenges of developing categories that remain consistent and accurate to define and classify mental disorders. There are also challenges to understand what may seem normal to some individuals may seem abnormal to others. Two main challenges of defining and classifying normal and abnormal behavior are culture and demographic context (Hansell & Damour, 2008). For example, in some cultures people believe it is normal to talk to a person who has passed away, whereas other...