G4 Glossary
Detoxifi cation Medically supervised
withdrawal for those with substance
dependence; also referred to as detox.
Diagnosis The identifi cation of the nature
of a disorder.
Diagnostic bias A systematic error in
diagnosis.
Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) The form
of treatment that includes elements of
CBT as well as an emphasis on validating
the patient’s experience, a Zen Buddhist
approach, and a dialectics component.Diathesis–stress model The model that
proposes that a psychological disorder
is triggered when a person with a
predisposition—a diathesis—for the
particular disorder experiences an
environmental event that causes signifi cant
stress.Disorganized schizophrenia The subtype
of schizophrenia characterized by
disorganized speech and behavior and
inappropriate emotional expression.
Dissociation The separation of mental
processes—such as perception, memory,
and self-awareness—that are normally
integrated.Dissociative amnesia A dissociative disorder
in which the sufferer has signifi cantly
impaired memory for important
experiences or personal information
that cannot be explained by ordinary
forgetfulness.
Dissociative disorders A category of
psychological disorders in which perception,
consciousness, memory, or identity are
dissociated to the point where the symptoms
are pervasive, cause signifi cant distress, and
interfere with daily functioning.Dissociative fugue A dissociative disorder
that involves sudden, unplanned travel and
diffi culty remembering the past, which can
lead patients to be confused about who
they are and sometimes to take on a new
identity.Dissociative identity disorder (DID) The
dissociative disorder characterized by the
presence of two or more distinct alters
(personality states or identities), each
with their own characteristics and history,
that take turns controlling the person’s
behavior.
Dizygotic twins Twins who developed from
two fertilized eggs and so have the same
overlap in genes (50%) as do siblings not
conceived at the same time; also referred to
asfraternal twins.Dopamine hypothesis The view that
schizophrenia arises from an overproduction
of dopamine or an increase in the number or
sensitivity of dopamine receptors.
Dopamine reward system The system
of neurons, primarily in the nucleus
accumbens and ventral tegmental area,
that relies on dopamine and gives rise to
pleasant feelings.
Dose-response relationship The association
between more treatment (a higher dose) and
greater improvement (a better response).
Double depression Having both major
depressive disorder and dysthymic disorder.
Double-blind design A research design
in which neither the participant nor the
investigator’s assistant knows the group
to which specifi c participants have been
assigned or the predicted results of the study.
Dream analysis The psychodynamic
technique in which the therapist interprets
the content of a patient’s dreams.
Drug cues The stimuli associated with
drug use that come to elicit conditioned
responses through their repeated pairings
with use of the drug.
Durham test The legal test in which a
person is considered insane if an irresistible
impulse to perform criminal behavior was
due to a mental defect or disorder present
at the time of the alleged crime.
Dyslexia A learning disorder characterized
by diffi culty with reading accuracy, speed,
or comprehension that interferes with
academic achievement or activities of daily
functioning that involve reading.
Dyspareunia A sexual dysfunction
characterized by recurrent or persistent
genital pain that is associated with sexual
intercourse.
Dysthymic disorder A depressive disorder
that involves fewer of the symptoms of a
major depressive episode, but the symptoms
persist for a longer period of time.° E °
Eating disorder not otherwise specifi ed
(EDNOS) The diagnosis given when an
individual’s symptoms of disordered
eating cause signifi cant distress or impair
functioning but do not meet the full
criteria for a diagnosis of anorexia nervosa
or bulimia nervosa.Eating disorders A category of psychological
disorders characterized by abnormal eating
and a preoccupation with body image.Ego According to Freud, the psychic
structure that is charged with mediating
between the id’s demands for immediate
gratifi cation and the superego’s high
standards of morality, as well as the
constraints of external reality.Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) A procedure
that causes a controlled brain seizure in an
effort to reduce or eliminate the symptoms
of certain psychological disorders.Elimination disorders A set of psychological
disorders characterized by inappropriate
urination or defecation.
Emotion A short-lived experience evoked
by a stimulus that produces a mental
response, a typical behavior, and a positive
or negative subjective feeling.Encopresis An elimination disorder
characterized by a child’s persistent
defecation in improper locations—neither
in a toilet nor in a diaper.
Enuresis An elimination disorder
characterized by a child’s persistent
urination in bed or into his or her
clothes.Epidemiology The type of correlational
research that investigates the rate of
occurrence, the possible causes and risk
factors, and the course of diseases or
disorders.
Errorless learning techniques Techniques
by which patients are explicitly guided
in learning a new skill rather than being
allowed to fi gure it out through trial and
error.Etiology The factors that lead a person to
develop a psychological disorder.
Executive functions Mental processes
involved in planning, organizing, problem
solving, abstract thinking, and exercising
good judgment.Exhibitionism A paraphilic disorder in
which sexual fantasies, urges, or behaviors
hinge on exposing one’s genitals to a
stranger, usually as a surprise.
Expansive mood A mood that involves
unceasing, indiscriminate enthusiasm for
interpersonal or sexual interactions or for
projects.Experimenter expectancy effect The
investigator’s intentionally or unintentionally
treating participants in ways that encourage
particular types of responses.
Experiments Research studies in which
investigators intentionally manipulate
one variable at a time, and measure the