Essay on Abnormal Psychology: Dissociative Identity Disorder

Submitted By bcloutier823
Words: 1420
Pages: 6
Open Document
Dissociative Identity Disorder
Dr. Donald Whitworth
Intro to Abnormal Psychology 280.02
November 26, 2013

Bradley Cloutier
Dr. Whitworth
PSYCH 280.02
26 November 2013
Dissociative Identity Disorder
Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID), formerly known as “Multiple Personality Disorder”, is one of the more complex disorders that can also be very closely related to child abuse. According to the American Journal of Psychiatry, Dissociative Identity Disorder is a disorder in which the subject develops multiple personalities that they cycle through on a daily basis. (Sar, 1996) The multiple personalities that a person can have will differ either slightly from one another, or the personalities can be complete opposites. Each personality is described to have its’ own background and history; completely separate than the other personalities that the subject may have. According to the Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, the average number of personalities that somebody diagnosed with DID is 4.5. (Piper, 2004) From these results, one can draw the conclusion that it is very difficult to cope with this disorder.
This disorder is a highly controversial psychiatric diagnosis because many believe that it is purely pathological and can’t be diagnosed. Despite this controversy, there are symptoms and causes that can be shown in a subject that may appear to have this disorder. One of the major causes of this disorder appears to be severe childhood trauma. According to Bliss, other stressors that may trigger DID include: witnessing domestic violence, experiencing war, trauma, earthquakes, fire, flood, or death of a primary caretaker. She even claims that an “overly sensitive” individual can develop this disorder as a result of feeling “rejected in early childhood”. (Piper, 2004) Some of the major symptoms that are associated with this disorder are: suicidal tendencies, sudden change in mood swings or depression, and psychotic-like symptoms.
Not only is the disorder itself controversial, but diagnosing has been a controversy between mental health professionals for the past fifty years. In adults, the number of reported DID cases increased strikingly in the 1980s. More DID cases were discovered during the 5 years prior to 1986 than in the preceding 2 centuries. (Foote, 2006) By 1986, 6000 patients had been diagnosed in the US alone. As Piper explains, “If childhood maltreatment were in fact a major cause of DID, and if the increase in DID cases in the 1980s were genuine, then the incidence of traumatic events endured by North American children during that time should also have risen sharply. We know of no data documenting such an increase.” (Piper, 2004) Explanations for the sudden increase in the amount of cases have two general hypotheses. The first hypothesis implies that the number of genuine cases has not actually increased. Thus, Piper believes that, “patients with this condition have always existed but simply were not recognized until a paradigm developed that increased practitioner’s diagnostic sophistication.” (Piper, 2004) In other words, mental health experts that were evaluating patients after the upward shift in Dissociative Identity Disorder had initially misdiagnosed their patients. Piper claims that patients were misdiagnosed for on average 6.8 years before they received a correct diagnosis from a practitioner. The second hypothesis relates to whether the condition’s (DID) prevalence has actually increased, either because of a change in the biology of the disorder, or because our society has started to “abuse children even more”. (Friedl, 2000) It does not seem like children have been bizzarely mistreated in the past, thus the hypothesis that patients had been misdiagnosed until DID had become an alarming statistic seems like a more accurate depiction of the situation.
According to the American Journal of Psychotherapy, one treatment that has proven success in the past is called the
Show More

Related Documents: Essay on Abnormal Psychology: Dissociative Identity Disorder

Dissociative Identity Disorder Research Paper

Demonic Possession and Dissociative Identity Disorder Dissociative identity disorder is not caused by demons. Dissociative identity disorder is caused by severe traumatic experience and painful childhood (Morris, C. G., & Maisto, A. A., 2006).Demonic possession is different from dissociative identity disorder because demonic possession is caused by demons. From the verse coming from Matthew 4:24 stated that “And the report of Him went forth into all Syria: and they brought unto Him all that were…

Words 1336 - Pages 6

Sybil Essay

Video Case Report PSY 281 – Abnormal Psychology Guilford Technical Community College For Dr. Stephen Ash Student Name(s): Kallie Roberts, Porsha, and Jarvis Date: 15, April 2013 1. Name of Video: Sybil 2. Assigned Case Character: a. Character Name: Sybil Dorsett b. Played by Actor/Actress: Sally Field 3. DSM-IV-TR Diagnoses: Axis I: Dissociative Identity Disorder (300.14) Axis II: N/A Axis III: Axis IV (External…

Words 3108 - Pages 13

Treva Throneberry Ap Psychology Essay

Treva Throneberry's behavior be considered dimensional in nature? Treva Throneberry's behavior can be considered dimensional in nature due to its complexity and the presence of multiple factors influencing her actions. Dimensional perspectives in psychology emphasize a continuum of behaviors and traits rather than categorical distinctions. In the case of Treva Throneberry, her behavior includes various dimensions such as deception, manipulation, and the pursuit of personal gain. The dimensional approach…

Words 2795 - Pages 12

Childhood Trauma Research Paper

lead to the Development of Dissociate Personality Disorder There are many causes to the development of how Dissociative Personality Disorder (DIS) progresses. Yet, childhood traumas have been shown to be one of the top reasons why the disorder can develop years after the negative experiences. Dissociative Personality Disorder is an unfortunate psychological disorder that impacts the lives of many individuals. Patients who suffer from this disorder is very difficult to manage with because they lose…

Words 1167 - Pages 5

Abnormal Psychology Conditions and Treatments Essay

between normal and abnormal behavior may seem obvious, what constitutes the definition often is based on the circumstances and the society the person lives or is from or lives in. Normal behavior is primarily defined as the person acting in concert with the way any person in the society he or she is currently in would act. Abnormal behavior is often denoted by a person's inability to adjust their behavior to suit the circumstances he or she is currently in. An example of abnormal behavior would be…

Words 2962 - Pages 12

Earl Brooks Psychology

Deviance refers to the idea that thoughts, emotions, and the behavior that people define as abnormal deviate from those deemed acceptable by society. Distress accounts for the negative feelings of individuals with psychological disorders. Dysfunction refers to maladaptive behavior or an impairment in the ability to perform everyday functions. Lastly, dangerous refers to violent behavior directed towards people…

Words 1551 - Pages 7

Essay on Chapter 12

Valladares Professor Henry Psychology 12 April 2015 Chapter 12: The Troubled Mind: Psychological Disorders In this chapter, we focus on psychological disorders and how these disorders may lead to behavior’s that violate cultural standards. I found this chapter very interesting because it made me think of just how difficult it must be for a doctor to diagnose these disorders. This is interesting because for them to correctly be diagnosed by the doctor, the doctor has to see abnormal behavior in the persons…

Words 721 - Pages 3

Abnormal Psychology and Secondary Anxiety Essay

Psychology Of Adjustment Study Guide: Chapter 14: 1. What does the medical model propose? The medical model proposes that it is useful to think of abnormal behavior as a disease, and has become the main way of thinking about mental illness today. The model has brought much needed improvement in patient care. 2. What are signs that a mental illness is present and you should seek a mental health assessment? (empirical approach to diagnosing mental illness) Symptoms which persistently get…

Words 1477 - Pages 6

Abnormal Psychology: Borderline Personality Disorder

Wherever you are Psychology surrounds us. I find that wherever I go or whoever I come in contact with I'm very observant of behavior and things going on around me. My best friend suffers from Borderline Personality Disorder and to better understand her and her diagnosis I felt I should educate myself on the disorder. She cut her wrists, tried to overdose of pills, when someone picked on her she would threaten to cut them with her knife, and her behavior was unpredictable at times. Even though people…

Words 404 - Pages 2

Multiple Personality Disorder Essay

The Facts On Dissociative Identity Disorder by Jalyn Watson British Literature Ms. Woodworth 3/25/13 Dissociative Identity Disorder, otherwise known as Multiple Personality Disorder, is caused by extreme trauma in early childhood that results in a “Disturbance in normal integrative functions of memory identity, and consciousness.” ("Dissociative Identity Disorder." Dissociative Identity Disorder.) The disturbance and abuse is so great that it causes the mind…

Words 2231 - Pages 9