The abnormal mind: an introduction to psychopathology

Despite attitude changes over the years the topics of mental illness and psychiatric disorder retain a curious quality. People simultaneously demonstrate a fascination with what happens when ‘the mind goes wrong’ but also an absence of deeper understanding and even fear.

This course provides a general introduction to the area psychopathology in terms of conception, diagnosis and treatment. It is structured around the idea that psychiatric conditions are not abnormal per se, but rather should be seen as extensions of everyday processes but to an abnormal degree. In other words, that the features making up such conditions exist on a spectrum that extends into the general population.

Whilst this idea seems to make intuitive sense with regard to depression or anxiety it becomes more problematic when considering conditions such as multiple personality disorder, autism or schizophrenia. The course therefore requires an examination of what actually constitutes ‘normality’ and the criteria that separates human variation from a psychiatric disorder.

Aside from providing an introduction to certain key conditions and an overview of different treatment approaches, the course will also focus on the issue of conceptualisation (as an extreme of everyday behaviour) and ask how realistic this view is.