social norms include
implicit and explicit social
rules about acceptable
behaviour, values and
befiefs.
People who behave in a socially
deviant and apparently
incomprehensible way, or who
violate these norms are often
regarded as deviant or abnormal
This can also be a useful way of identifying
mental disorders. If we know a persons
behaviour deviates drastically from what is
expected then this may be an indication
that they need help
Weakneses
Change with time
Social norms are context dependant
Going against social norms
can be a good thing
Social norms are culturallly
relative
Deviation from ideal mental health
This approach was put
forward by Johoda. She
compared the way we look at
mental to the way we look at
physical health.
She devised 6 criteria for optimal
living: Positive attitude towards
self, Self actualisation of one's
potential, Resistance to stress
Weaknesses
Difficulty in reaching self actualisation
Possible benefits of
stress
Cultural issues
Failure to function adequatley
Describes the individuals
failure to cope with day to
day living such as work or
socialising due to
psychological distress
The GAF scale is a tool used
to measure a person's level of
functioningin terms of personal
wellbeing, family, interests and
work (out of 100)