By Richard Milich and Walter Roberts, University of Kentucky. Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a psychiatric disorder that is most often diagnosed in school-aged children. Many children with ADHD find it difficult to focus on tasks and follow instructions, and these characteristics can lead to problems in school and at home. How children with ADHD are diagnosed and treated is a topic of controversy, and many people, including scientists and nonscientists alike, hold strong beliefs about what ADHD is and how people with the disorder should be treated. This module will familiarize the reader with the scientific literature on ADHD. First, we will review how ADHD is diagnosed in children, with a focus on how mental health professionals distinguish between ADHD and normal behavior problems in childhood. Second, we will describe what is known about the causes of ADHD. Third, we will describe the treatments that are used to help children with ADHD and their families. The module will conclude with a brief discussion of how we expect that the diagnosis and treatment of ADHD will change over the coming decades.

By Dalena van Heugten - van der Kloet, Maastricht University. In psychopathology, dissociation happens when thoughts, feelings, and experiences of our consciousness and memory do not collaborate well with each other. This module provides an overview of dissociative disorders, including the definitions of dissociation, its origins and competing theories, and their relation to traumatic experiences and sleep problems.

By Anda Gershon and Renee Thompson, Stanford University, Washington University in St. Louis. Everyone feels down or euphoric from time to time, but this is different from having a mood disorder such as major depressive disorder or bipolar disorder. Mood disorders are extended periods of depressed, euphoric, or irritable moods that in combination with other symptoms cause the person significant distress and interfere with his or her daily life, often resulting in social and occupational difficulties. In this module, we describe major mood disorders, including their symptom presentations, general prevalence rates, and how and why the rates of these disorders tend to vary by age, gender, and race. In addition, biological and environmental risk factors that have been implicated in the development and course of mood disorders, such as heritability and stressful life events, are reviewed. Finally, we provide an overview of treatments for mood disorders, covering treatments with demonstrated effectiveness, as well as new treatment options showing promise.

By Chris Patrick, Florida State University. Psychopathy (or “psychopathic personality”) is a topic that has long fascinated the public at large as well as scientists and clinical practitioners. However, it has also been subject to considerable confusion and scholarly debate over the years. This module reviews alternative conceptions of psychopathy that have been proposed historically, and reviews major instruments currently in use for the assessment of psychopathic tendencies in clinical and nonclinical samples. An integrative theoretic framework, the Triarchic model, is presented that provides a basis for reconciling differing historic conceptions and assessment approaches. Implications of the model for thinking about causal hypotheses of psychopathy, and for resolving longstanding points of contention in the field, are discussed.

This course is a survey of the scientific study of human nature, including how the mind works, and how the brain supports the mind. Topics include the mental and neural bases of perception, emotion, learning, memory, cognition, child development, personality, psychopathology, and social interaction. Students will consider how such knowledge relates to debates about nature and nurture, free will, consciousness, human differences, self, and society.

Psychology is designed to meet scope and sequence requirements for the single-semester introduction to psychology course. The book offers a comprehensive treatment of core concepts, grounded in both classic studies and current and emerging research. The text also includes coverage of the DSM-5 in examinations of psychological disorders. Psychology incorporates discussions that reflect the diversity within the discipline, as well as the diversity of cultures and communities across the globe.Senior Contributing AuthorsRose M. Spielman, Formerly of Quinnipiac UniversityContributing AuthorsKathryn Dumper, Bainbridge State CollegeWilliam Jenkins, Mercer UniversityArlene Lacombe, Saint Joseph's UniversityMarilyn Lovett, Livingstone CollegeMarion Perlmutter, University of Michigan

By the end of this section, you will be able to:Understand the problems inherent in defining the concept of psychological disorderDescribe what is meant by harmful dysfunctionIdentify the formal criteria that thoughts, feelings, and behaviors must meet to be considered abnormal and, thus, symptomatic of a psychological disorder

How do we make decisions about the situations we experience every day? In this session, we'll use brain teasers and word problems to highlight some of the mechanisms that drive human thinking — e.g. functional fixedness, heuristics, and framing. The lecture also touches briefly on the role of the brain's frontal lobes in problem solving and emotions.

Test Banks 1 out of 3 for (Stangor & Walinga text; MIT Open Courseware). Topics include: Introduction to Psychology, Science and Research of Psychology, Brain Structure, Brain Function, Methods of Brain Research, Vision, Consciousness, Attention, Memory, and Learning. Questions formats include multiple choice, short answer, fill in the blank, anatomical identification, short essay,

Test Banks 2 out of 3 for (Stangor & Walinga text; MIT Open Courseware). Topics include: Memory, Learning, Language, Thinking, Intelligence, and emotion and motivation. Questions formats include multiple choice, short answer, fill in the blank, anatomical identification, short essay,

Test Banks 3 out of 3 for (Stangor & Walinga text; MIT Open Courseware) Topics include: Personality, Child Development, Adult Development, Stress, Psychopathology, Social Psychology, Evolutionary Psychology, and Happiness. Questions formats include multiple choice, short answer, fill in the blank, anatomical identification, short essay,

A brief explanation of how psychological disorders are diagnosed and classified including the main content of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) and the International Classification of Diseases, and person-centered language.
Duration: 1:59.

Provides an introduction to psychological disorders diagnosed during childhood. Includes information on the following topics: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Autism Spectrum Disorder, and their respective symptoms, causes, and other characteristics.
Duration: 2:42

A very brief introduction to the dissociative disorders: dissociative amnesia, dissociative fugue, depersonalization, derealization, dissociative identity disorder. Duration:

A very brief introduction to personality disorders, including definition and classification. Duration: 3:33

A brief introduction to the main perspectives on psychological disorders: biological, genetic, and environmental. Duration: 1:16.