In 1998 Rosenhan & Seligman described the seven elements common to most definitions of abnormality. The seven elements they can up with are suffering, maladaptiveness, irrationality and incomprehensibility, unpredictability and loss of control, vividness and unconventionality, observer discomfort, and violation of moral and ideal standards.
Suffering is when patients report that they are suffering. Maladaptiveness is behavior, which prevents people from achieving major life goals such as having a family or working an everyday job. Vividness and unconventionality is when patient’s behavior is substantially different from most people. Unpredictability and loss of control is behavior of abnormal people is often very variable and uncontrolled and inappropriate. Irrationality and incomprehensibility others cannot understand why anyone would choose to behave in this way. Observer discomfort is when people become uncomfortable when they are around the patient. Violation of moral and ideal standards is behavior by a patient that violates established moral standards. Of these seven the three that I feel are most central to determining a clinical abnormality are vividness and unconventionality, unpredictability and loss of control and suffering.
Vividness and unconventionality is when someone’s behavior is substantially different from most people in society. This can range from someone with schizophrenia using strange way of speaking to someone suffering from anorexia nervosa being afraid to eat. The main thing is the patient is acting in a way, which isn’t normal. This element is important because this is the overall principle of mental disorders; people acting in a way, which isn’t normal. If someone’s behavior is totally off the wall and they don’t seem to be that same as everyone else I think they should be checked to see if they suffer from a mental disorder.
Unpredictability and loss of control is when someone’s behavior is