Mental health problems are increasingly visible. When we are not the ones who suffer from it, it is not strange to find someone around us who has psychological problems. This situation becomes more evident with the health crisis we are currently experiencing.
But do all these people suffer from a psychological disorder? What characteristics do psychological disorders have? What types of disorders exist? Could new disorders appear and some of those that currently exist disappear? In this Psychology-Online article, we tell you What is a psychological disorder: characteristics and types.
What is a psychological disorder?
Throughout human history, we have always tried to label and classify reality. He has had the need to know the phenomena that occur around him, their characteristics, their functioning, give them names and thus organize them. This has been the way to acquire knowledge about the world around us and constitutes a key element when communicating and transmitting information.
So what are psychological disorders? Is about diagnostic labels that group together a series of signs and symptoms that tend to appear together and form a pathological picture. Precisely, they constitute a form of organize psychopathological reality. All disorders are included in diagnostic classification manuals such as the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) and the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) of the World Health Organization.
Characteristics of psychological disorders
A psychological disorder has an extensive body of scientific research whose results make up a theoretical framework that includes, in addition to the signs and symptoms that make it up, explanatory theories about its origin (what is known as etiology), data on the effects they have. between the population (prevalence) and the evolution they could have in the future depending on various variables (prognosis).
Next, we are going to look in depth at the characteristics of psychological disorders.
- The effectiveness of the psychological treatments it is studied based on specific problemsThat is, a good definition and identification of psychological disorders is necessary to conclude which treatments work for certain disorders. For example, we know that exposure techniques work and offer good results in anxiety disorders.
- The psychological disorders allow combining criteria. This facilitates communication between the professional and the patient. For example, we all understand, in general terms, what depression is.
- The diagnosis of a disorder is even made necessary in certain cases for legal reasonsas in the case of disability or pension granting.
- Suffering from a psychological disorder and being diagnosed could stigmatize the sufferercausing negative consequences such as judgment and social rejection.
- We live in a changing reality and, therefore, there are disorders collected in the rankings that may become obsolete due to such changes or advances in research. This is, for example, the case of homosexuality, which, unfortunately, was included as a psychological disorder in the first versions of the classifications. This also occurs with disorders that arise with changes, such as those related to addiction to new technologies such as video games.
- Along the same lines as the previous point, we are currently hearing the term “pandemic fatigue”, and it would not be strange if new disorders appeared related to the health crisis we are experiencing caused by COVID-19.
Types of psychological disorders
How many types of psychological disorders are there? We can find differences between the ICD classifications and the latest version of the DSM when it comes to classifying psychological disorders. Even so, in both classifications we can find certain groups of disorders. Next, we will see what types of disorders these classifications include:
Anxiety disorders
One of the main psychological disorders is anxiety disorders. These produce a high physiological, motor and cognitive activation. The person who suffers from some of them may present symptoms such as palpitations, sweating, repetitive movements, catastrophic thoughts, etc. The main types of anxiety disorders are:
In this category we also found, in previous versions, the and the , although in the latest versions they are presented as independent categories. In the case of post-traumatic stress, it has been grouped, in the latest versions, together with adaptive disorders.
Mood disorders
Mood disorders are also one of the most common psychological disorders. Let’s see what the classification of mood disorders is:
Psychotic disorders
Other types of disorders are psychotic. Specifically, the types of psychotic disorders are the following:
Disorders associated with biological needs
Within primary motivations and biological needs we also find possible dysfunctions. Discover what disorders are associated with biological needs:
Addictive disorders
Addictive disorders also make up a group of disorders that are well known among the population. Below, we present the most common addictive disorders:
Neurodevelopmental and neurocognitive disorders
More neuropsychological in nature, we find neurodevelopmental disorders and neurocognitive disorders. Let’s see what the types of neurodevelopmental disorders are:
Personality disorders
Other categories that we find in the classifications are personality disorders. We tell you what personality disorders are:
Conduct disorders and impulse control
We can also find other typologies such as behavioral and impulse control disorders. Types of behavioral disorders include the following disorders:
Finally, it is also worth mentioning that there are somatic, paraphilic and the .
Future of psychological treatments
The grouping of the psychopathological reality into categories called disorders must be in constant study and evolution to try to alleviate their own limitations. It is possible that the disorders that today represent the problems that appear in consultation are different from the problems that appear in the future.
It is possible that this definition system is obsolete and that, in the future, we will have to look for other models to define psychopathological reality. Regarding this, it appears transdiagnostic approach, a promising perspective focused on dimensions and not categories, which pays special attention to symptoms and not disorders. In this way, the aim is to describe, analyze and intervene on a more reliable reality than that presented to us by the traditional model.
This article is merely informative, at Psychology-Online we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.
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References
- “Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders” (DSM) of the “American Psychiatric Association” (APA) which is in its fifth edition, the DSM-5
- “International Classification of Diseases” (ICD) of the “World Health Organization” (WHO) which is in its eleventh edition ICD-11.
Bibliography
- American Psychiatric Association (2014). DSM-5. Reference guide to the diagnostic criteria of the DSM-5-Breviary. Madrid: Panamericana Medical Editorial.
- World Health Organization (WHO) (1992). ICD-10. Mental and behavioral disorders. Madrid: Meditor.
- World Health Organization (WHO) (2018) International Classification of Diseases, 11th revision. Recovered from https://icd.who.int/es