Author Profile

Austin J. Saldin, Ph.D. is a clinical psychologist by training and obtained his PhD in psychology at the University of Cape Town. Professor Austin also holds a PhD in English Studies (creative writing) from Stellenbosch University. He joined the Department of Psychology at Stellenbosch University as a Professor in 2001, having been a professor in Psychology at University of Cape Town. In addition to being employed at Stellenbosch University, Professor Austin is a Visiting Professor in Psychology at University of Johannesburg, and Global Advisor to the Institute for Culture and Society, University of Western Sydney, Australia. Professor Austin has also received a number of awards for his work, including the Academy of Sciences of South Africa Gold Medal for Science-for-Society in 2019. His research focuses on the resilience of children and youth at risk of poor developmental outcomes, such as teenage mothers, pregnant school-going learners, learners living with disabilities, learners who live and work on the streets, learners from child-headed households, substance-abusing learners and orphans. Apart from supervising postgraduate students, he has published articles in peer-reviewed journals, contributed chapters in edited books and participated in funded national and international research projects. He has served as a guest editor for two academic journals and is currently serving on the editorial boards of two international journals.

About The Book

Defining abnormality is deceptively difficult. When asked to describe abnormal behaviour, people typically say that it occurs infrequently, is odd or strange, is characterized by suffering, or is dangerous. All of these are reasonable answers for some types of abnormal behaviour, but none of them is sufficient in itself, and making them all necessary results in too strict a definition. One parsimonious and practical way to define abnormal behaviour is to ask whether the behaviour causes impairment in the person's life. The more a behaviour gets in the way of successful functioning in an important domain of life including the psychological, interpersonal and achievement/performance domains, the more likely it is to be considered a sign of abnormality. When several such behaviors or symptoms occur together, they may constitute a psychological disorder. Psychological disorders are formally defined in widely used classification systems, or nosologies: the International Classification of Diseases - 10th edition (ICD-10; World Health Organization, 1992) and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders - 4th edition (DSM-IV; APA, 1994). Although they differ from one another in format, these two systems cover the same disorders and define them in a similar manner. Psychopathology and abnormal psychology are closely related, often used interchangeably, referring to the scientific study of psychological disorders and abnormal behavior, focusing on their symptoms, causes, diagnosis, and treatment. Abnormal psychology is the broader field of studying unusual behaviors, while psychopathology can refer specifically to the disorders themselves or their underlying disease processes, often implying a medical model, and is essential for fields like clinical psychology and psychiatry. Key aspects involve distress, dysfunction, deviance from norms, and potential danger, though definitions evolve with culture and time. Psychological disorders are patterns of behavioral or psychological symptoms that impact multiple areas of life. These conditions create distress for the person experiencing symptoms. Mental health professionals use the "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders," published by the American Psychiatric Association (APA), for a variety of purposes. The manual contains a listing of psychiatric disorders, diagnostic codes, information on the prevalence of each disorder, and diagnostic criteria. There are several different approaches used to understand abnormal psychology. While some psychologists or psychiatrists may focus on a single viewpoint, many mental health professionals use elements from multiple viewpoints to better understand and treat psychological disorders. It would be impossible to understand the meaning and object of study of psychopathology without first defining abnormality.

Table of Contents

Preface
1. ABNORMAL BEHAVIOR IN HISTORICAL CONTEXT
2. AN INTEGRATIVE APPROACH TO PSYCHOPATHOLOGY
3. NEW DIRECTIONS IN COGNITIVE THERAPY
4. BIOLOGICAL EXPLANATIONS AND TREATMENTS
5. BEYOND THE INDIVIDUAL
6. SOMATOFORM DISORDERS
7. SCHIZOPHRENIA
8. ANXIETY DISORDERS
9. MOOD DISORDERS
10. TRAUMA-RELATED CONDITIONS
11. SEXUAL DISORDERS
12. PERSONALITY DISORDERS
Bibliography
Index