Generally speaking main object of psychology is behavior and in clinical psychology it is a disorder.
Psychologists study how human behave in very different perspective. Neuroscience psychologists determine behavior to inborn predisposition and physiology, in cognitive psychology the biggest concern is how human sense the world and percepts it, how information is learned and affects behavior. Psychologist also developed a wide range of different models of motivation and developing theories that helps to describe and explain why humans behave how they behave. Mostly psychologists speak about healthy and normal individuals.
One of the biggest problems they encounter is how to define a disorder. Disorder might be considered as behavior without order or abnormal behavior therefore a disorder should be considered as in continuum with behavior rather than different states.
There are some criterions that help to evaluate when behavior seems to lose its order. By the help of statistics behavior might be asserted as disorder if it deviates from the average. Statistical method is quantitative considering that it is not always helpful determining disorders because some deviations from the average might be desirable like high IQ that helps to successfully operate in new environment, solve problems and some deviations might be just an alternative lifestyle that does not cause any threat to the individual’s health or other people.
Psychologist usually labels behavior as a disorder when it is disturbing one’s ability to adapt to the environment and function properly.
The best thing about being schizophrenic is that I am never alone.References
Feldman R. S. Understanding Psychology Ninth Edition. New York: MacGraw-Hill 2009.
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