Defining mental health and abnormality, the increasing incidence of mental health problems, the effects of mental health problems on individuals and society, and changing attitudes towards mental health.

What this dot point is asking

OCR wants you to explain how psychologists define mental health and abnormality, describe the rising incidence of mental health problems, the effects of mental health problems on individuals and society, and how attitudes towards mental health have changed.

Defining mental health and abnormality

The main definitions you should know are:

• Deviation from social norms. Behaviour is abnormal if it breaks the unwritten rules and expectations of a society (for example, ignoring personal space or talking aloud to oneself in public). Limitation: norms vary between cultures and change over time, so this is subjective.
• Failure to function adequately. Behaviour is abnormal if the person can no longer cope with everyday demands (holding a job, eating, washing, maintaining relationships), so it interferes with daily life. Limitation: it is hard to judge when difficulty becomes "failure".
• Statistical infrequency. Behaviour is abnormal if it is statistically rare, far from the average for the population. Limitation: some rare traits (like very high intelligence) are not "problems", and some disorders are common.

Because each definition has weaknesses, mental health professionals usually use several together, alongside clinical judgement.

The rising incidence of mental health problems

It is important to separate better detection from a true rise. Some of the increase reflects improved awareness and diagnosis (people who would once have suffered in silence now seek help), but research also points to genuine increases in conditions like anxiety and depression among adolescents, an issue the contemporary core study Tandoc et al. (2015) links to social media use.

The effects on individuals and society

Mental health problems affect both the person and the wider community.

• For the individual: distress and reduced quality of life, difficulty working or studying, strained relationships, physical health effects, and in severe cases self-harm or suicide risk.
• For society: healthcare costs (treatment, hospital care), lost productivity (absence from work, reduced output), pressure on families and carers, and wider economic costs.

These effects are explored further in effects and attitudes to mental health.

Changing attitudes towards mental health

In the past, mental health problems were poorly understood and heavily stigmatised: sufferers were often blamed, feared, hidden in institutions, or thought to be "weak" or possessed. As psychology and medicine developed, mental illness came to be seen as a genuine health condition with biological, psychological and social causes that can be treated. Anti-stigma campaigns, more open public discussion and better services have made it more acceptable to talk about mental health and to seek help. This matters because reduced stigma encourages earlier treatment, though stigma has not disappeared.

Evaluating how we define abnormality

Defining abnormality matters because it affects who is diagnosed and treated. The strength of having several definitions is that each captures something the others miss (rules, functioning, rarity). The weaknesses are that they are subjective and culturally variable (what is "normal" differs between societies and eras), and labelling someone abnormal can carry stigma and trigger negative reactions. This is why modern practice uses multiple definitions plus clinical judgement and stresses reducing stigma so people feel able to seek help.

Try this

Q1. Name three definitions of abnormality. [3 marks]

• Cue. Deviation from social norms, failure to function adequately, statistical infrequency.

Q2. Give one reason the recorded incidence of mental health problems has risen. [1 mark]

• Cue. Better recognition and diagnosis (and reduced stigma), or a genuine increase linked to factors like social media.

Q3. State one effect of mental health problems on society. [1 mark]

• Cue. Healthcare costs or lost productivity (absence from work).