symptoms: behavioral signs indicating a disorder is present

diagnosis: a classification of a disorder; typically the DSM-IV is used to determine the diagnosis

etiology: suggestion of a cause of a disorder

prognosis: an estimate as to the length of time or degree of effectiveness in treating a disorder

treatment: a course of action aimed at reducing, controlling or eliminating the symptoms of a disorder

There are six recognized models of treatment:

psychodynamic: believes the key to successful treatment involves having the patient gain insight into their unconscious motives, emotions or conflicts

behavioral: advocates relearning as the preferred method of correcting past maladaptive behaviors

humanistic: believes in the inherent goodness of people and strives to make them more fully-functioning

cognitive: attempts to restructure the patient's incorrect thought processes and unrealistic expectations into more realistic thoughts

biomedical: advocates the treatment of psychological disorders through chemical or surgical processes

group therapy: allows other afflicted with similar disorders to share real-world solutions and coping mechanisms

Sigmund Freud pioneered this form of treatment with his "talking cure," a derivative of Joseph Breuer's "chimney sweeping." Both of these involve the cathartic method, or a treatment that results in a cleansing or purging of emotions. The ultimate goal is to provide the patient insight into past, unresolved conflicts from emotionally abrasive experiences during childhood. The patients may exhibit resistance, or an unwillingness to discuss their thoughts and behaviors freely.

Freud's psychoanalysis involves three parts:

free association: allowing the patient to say whatever is important to them at the time with minimal prompting from the therapist

hypnosis: a mild state of relaxation and increased suggestibility that Freud perfected through his studies with Jean Martin Charcot in Paris

dream analysis: an investigation into the dream work, the process involved in changing the latent content of a dream produced by the id into the manifest content designed to preserve ego integrity

While undergoing therapy, the patient can experience both positive and negative transference. Positive transference involves projecting the patient's warm feelings for their parents onto the therapist; negative transference involves projecting hostile feelings towards authority figures onto the therapist. The therapist can also suffer from countertransference where they project feelings of affection or hostility toward significant people in their lives onto the patient.

NeoFreudians or post-Freudians have emphasized different aspects of Freud's theories. They don't believe the libido is the primary motive in our unconscious actions. They believe that current issues the individual is dealing with are sometimes more significant than experiences in childhood. They include the influence of social and interpersonal relationships in the patient's overall mental health. They also believe that the patient's self-concept plays a significant role in their emotional well-being.

There are a variety of behavioral techniques employed to correct maladaptive learning:

behavioral contracting: also called behavior modification or contingency management, involves the use of operant conditioning in providing rewards for positive behaviors and punishment for negative behaviors; behavioral contracting actually spells out the criteria for receiving rewards and punishment

avoidance conditioning: also called aversive conditioning, this technique teaches the patient to avoid negative behaviors because they will result in punishment; patients may take medication to make them throw up if they drink any alcohol

systematic desensitization: a step-by-step process in which patients move closer to the objects or situations they fear, progressing each step only when they feel comfortable enough to proceed; a person who is afraid of heights will gradually progress from the bottom to the top of a tall building to combat their acrophobia

implosion: the patient is exposed to the object or situation they most fear or provokes the greatest emotional reaction in order to extinguish the anxiety associated with the entire class of stimuli; a person who is afraid of dogs will encounter a large dog to extinguish their fear of all sizes of dog

flooding: used for combating phobias, the patient is exposed to the object or situation they most fear with the guidance of the therapist to check their understanding of reality and realistic expectancies; the advantages of implosion and flooding are that the therapist can get an accurate observation of the patient's behaviors and is there to guide the patient through their anxiety

modeling: part of social learning therapy, patients observe appropriate behaviors in others and then model those behaviors

Cognitive therapies involve getting the patient to think in more rational or realistic terms. There are several cognitive therapies:

cognitive behavior therapy: focuses on changing incorrect or unrealistic attitudes and expectations through reinforcement contingencies (rewards and punishments)

Aaron Beck's cognitive therapy: focuses on patients suffering from depression, false assumptions and incorrect thinking are changed into more realistic and productive thinking by evaluating evidence, situational factors and other possible solutions

rational-emotion therapy (RET): irrational beliefs that provoke inappropriate emotional responses are changed into more productive thinking and behaviors

stress inoculation therapy: patients are taught to cope with situations that produce an unreasonable amount of anxiety reaction through more reasonable thinking, predicting upcoming stress and techniques to control or reduce the anxiety

Humanistic therapy focuses on our biological actualizing tendency to make ourselves better and integrate our personality into a more fully functioning person. There are two humanistic therapies:

client-centered therapy: devised by Carl Rogers, this therapy provides unconditional positive regard or total positive support, to the individual

Gestalt therapy: focuses on the whole person (the whole is greater than the sum of its parts) in integrating the mind and body; emphasizes dealing with unresolved issues, expressing repressed feelings and resolving life tasks

Psychosurgery (also called lesioning or ablation) involves cutting parts of the brain. This procedure is irreparable. Psychosurgery is usually used when medication or other forms of therapy prove unsuccessful. Hemispherectomies, which involves severing the corpus collosum in the brain, has been used to reduce the effects of grand mal epileptic seizures. Prefrontal lobotomies involves severing the nerves between the prefrontal lobes of the brain and the lower brain centers. This has been used for a variety of disorders but currently is very rarely used if at all.

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is commonly referred to as "shock therapy." This procedure is used for helping cure chronic depression and involves passing an electric current of 70-150 volts across the patient's head. The patient is tranquilized and, after the current is administered, has a brief seizure and loses consciousness. Side effects can include memory loss. Research indicates that ECT is used regularly by some practitioners to alleviate depression when anti-depressant drugs don't work.

Drug therapy is by far the most commonly used therapy in use today. Medication is used to control a variety of psychological disorders:

Although they don't cure the disorders, antipsychotic drugs are used to control the symptoms of use sever disorders as schizophrenia. Clozopine is one of the most widely used medications that helps regulate neurotransmitters in the brain.

Antidepressants are used to combat primarily depression. Prozac is by far the most commonly prescribed antidepressant because it has fewer side effects than other medications. It works by regulating serotonin in the brain. Effexor is also widely prescribed and regulates both seronotin and norepinephrine in the brain. Lithium is commonly prescribed for those suffering from bipolar disorder.

Antianxiety drugs, commonly called tranquilizers, reduce the symptoms and effects of anxiety. Some, such as Miltown or Equanil, are muscle relaxants, while others such as Librium and Valium affect the central nervous system. Dependence and addiction can develop with these medications.

Eysenck (1952), through a series of studies, concluded that therapy significantly helped about 2 out of 3 people. Two-thirds of neurotic patients, however, would recover or improve within two years without treatment. Therefore, therapy was no more effective than no therapy. Bergin and Lambert (1978) found that 1 out of 3 people improves without treatment but conceded that they do get therapeutic help from friends, clergy, physicians and teachers. The general consensus now is that therapy is effective but works best for mild disorders and for people who want to change.

Seligman and Consumer Reports (1995) concluded the following:

1. 90% of patients feel better after therapy
2. medication with therapy did not improve people’s scores than simple therapy
3. there are no differences in the form of therapy
4. there are no differences in effectiveness between psychologists, psychiatrists and social workers
5. marriage counselors were seen as less effective
6. patients with long-term therapy had more improvement than those with short-term therapy

Insight therapy is effective for people seeking self-understanding, relief of inner conflicts and anxiety, and better relationships with others. Behavior therapy works best for people with specific anxieties. Cognitive therapy is used for treating depression and anxiety disorders.

Currently the trend is toward eclecticism, an approach that recognizes the value of a broad treatment package over a rigid commitment to one particular form of therapy.