Question

Harry, a behavioral psychologist, is in the process of analyzing his patient maria valentines report. maria has been diagnosed with dissociative identity disorder (did). according to harry, severe physical abuse in childhood can serve as a plausible explanation for marias psychological disorder. maria is emotionally damaged and forms alternate identities in order to shut out past memories and to cope with the trauma. in the context of theoretical approaches to psychological disorders, it can be inferred that harrys explanation of marias condition conforms to the _____ approach to psychological disorders.

Answer 1

There are a few approaches to psychological disorders. These are the biological, psychodynamic, behavioral, cognitive, humanistic, cultural and diathesis-stress approach. For disorders like the DID, it involves the unconscious mind making up different personalities. The common approach to split personality disorders is the psychodynamic approach. This focuses on the conflict between the conscious and unconscious part of the mind. The disorder arises because you repress your urges, so your unconscious mind conjures a personality to resolve this conflict.