• 8.2: Mental Disorders

      • 8.2.1: Mood Disorders

        • OpenStax College: Psychology: "Chapter 15, Section 7: Mood Disorders" URL

          Read this section pertaining to mood disorders. Mood disorders fall into the basic groups of elevated mood such as mania or hypomania, depressed mood of which the best-known and most researched is major depressive disorder (MDD) (commonly called clinical depression, unipolar depression, or major depression), and moods which cycle between mania and depression known as bipolar disorder (BD) (formerly known as manic depression). When reading this section think about the effects of mood disorders on people’s lives. Major questions to consider include what are the major mood disorders? What are the diagnostic criteria? Who is affected by mood disorders?

      • 8.2.2: Anxiety Disorders

      • 8.2.3: Psychotic Disorders and Schizophrenia

        • The Noba Project: Deanna M. Barch's "Schizophrenia Spectrum Disorders" Page

          Schizophrenia is a serious mental illness characterized by incoherent or illogical thoughts, bizarre behavior and speech, and delusions or hallucinations, such as hearing voices. Schizophrenia typically begins in early adulthood. Antipsychotic drugs aren’t the only treatment people with schizophrenia need. As you read this unit, think about how medication, psychotherapy, and support can help a person diagnosed with schizophrenia regain their life.

        • Khan Academy: "Biological Basis of Schizophrenia" Page

          Throughout this course we have emphasized the alignment of the mind and body. As you review this video regarding the biological basis of schizophrenia, think about how this mind-body interaction affects a person living with this illness. What are the implications of this interaction to help a person with this diagnosis live a quality life?

      • 8.2.4 Personality Disorders

        • The Noba Project: Cristina Crego and Thomas Widiger's "Personality Disorders" Page

          Personality refers to individual differences in characteristic patterns of thinking, feeling and behaving. The study of personality focuses on two broad areas: One is understanding individual differences in particular personality characteristics, such as sociability or irritability. The other is understanding how the various parts of a person come together as a whole. As you read this section, think about how the convergence of nature and nurture may contribute to a person developing a personality disorder.