Psychopathology II (PSY 8112)

SPRING, 2002 

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Instructor:  Christopher J. Patrick

Phone:  626-9918

Office:  N416 Elliott Hall

Office Hrs:  W 1:30-3:30 PM

Course Text: 

Zuckerman, M. (1999). Vulnerability to psychopathology. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

            - available at campus bookstore.

Other useful reference books:

LeDoux, J. E. (1996). The emotional brain. New York: Simon & Schuster.

            - currently on sale for $2.99 at Borders on Univ. Avenue in St. Paul (651-641-0026).

American Psychiatric Association. (1994). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (4th ed.). Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Press.  (DSM-IV)

Course Objectives and Description

            This is a course designed for beginning or advanced clinical psychology graduate students.  The focus of the course is on adult psychopathology and its principal objectives are as follows:

            1) To encourage the development of an integrated, structural perspective on major forms of Axis I and II psychopathology within DSM-IV.

            2) To review what is currently known about brain systems underlying emotional reactivity (in particular, fear and anxiety) and behavioral inhibition as they relate to “internalizing” and “externalizing” syndromes and affiliated problem behaviors.

            3) To familiarize students with paradigms and methods for investigating psychobiological processes associated with psychopathology.

            The first part of the course will focus on theoretical and empirical work on emotional processing.  We will review research that has examined the structure of affective experience as indexed by self-report, and link this work to what is known about basic neurobiological systems underlying emotional reactivity and response modulation.  Some coverage will be provided concerning strategies for eliciting and measuring emotion in the laboratory. We will also review current perspectives concerning the interplay of cognitive and affective processes, and the role of higher brain systems in the processing of complex emotional cues and the regulation of affect and motivational behavior.

            Next, we will discuss how emotion connects to personality, through temperament traits.  Relationships among major structural models of personality (Eysenck, Five-factor, Tellegen) will be discussed in relation to the literature on temperament.  Evidence for continuity among dimensions of temperament and psychopathological syndromes represented in DSM-IV will be discussed.  A case will be made for the existence of two broad dimensions of psychopathology: (i) an “internalizing” (INT) dimension encompassing Anxiety and Mood disorders from Axis I, along with Cluster “C” personality disorders from Axis II; and an “externalizing” (EXT) dimension encompassing Substance-related disorders from Axis I and Antisocial Personality (both its adult and childhood manifestations) from Axis II, along with other probable affiliates.

            In the final section of the course, we will review, for the INT and EXT dimensions in turn: (i) relevant brain systems, (ii) laboratory task paradigms developed to assess the functioning of these systems, (iii) evidence for physiological and behavioral “markers” of these psychopathology dimensions, and (iv) future directions for paradigmatic research.

Readings

            The assigned readings for this course will consist of journal articles and book chapters provided week by week.  In addition, each student will complete additional readings in conjunction with the assignments described below. 

Course Evaluation

            There are no major exams in this course.  However, there will be an in-class quiz at the beginning of each class period, dealing with major concepts and terms from the assigned readings for that class period.  The quizzes as a whole will account for 25% of the final grade.  If a student “misses” a class, and thus a quiz, then the student’s overall quiz grade will be pro-rated from scores on the remaining completed quizzes.  Students should notify the instructor in advance if they intend to miss a class for any reason.

            During the course, each student will also be assigned an individual empirical article to read and critique.  Students will prepare a written synopsis (including critical evaluation) of this article for distribution to fellow students and to the instructor.  This assignment will count 10% toward the final grade.

            Midway through the term, students will craft a written proposal for an experiment designed to test a specific hypothesis arising from our discussions of concepts and methods relevant to the INT disorders.  This assignment will count 15% toward the final grade.

            The final course assignment will involve a summary of available information concerning a specific brain system or region, and its relevance to the EXT syndromes.  Each student will cover a different topic area, and will be responsible for preparing (i) an oral presentation to the class on this topic, and (ii) a detailed summary of the material reviewed (including text, graphics, references, and links) in electronic, web page format.  Web summaries will be made available to other students in the class as well as to the instructor. The oral presentation will count 10% toward the final grade, the web page summary 30%.

            The remaining 10% of the course grade will be based on attendance and participation in class discussions.

Note: Students with disabilities needing accomodations, please see the instructor

            immediately.