In drug therapies, any medical benefit not caused by biologically active properties of the drug, but by the patient’s expectation that the drug will help him.

Fear of being in diverse social situations outside one’s home, such as in stores, public transportation, or among crowds.

Demanding, dogmatic thoughts that distort reality illogically and cause people to experience negative emotions.

Interactions between a therapist and client(s) in which the therapist speaks with the client, with a goal of improving emotional state, thinking, and behavioral skills.

A depressive disorder in which some women experience symptoms akin to major depression beginning within weeks of childbirth.

A psychological disorder in which people experience the sudden bouts of intense terror and extreme physiological arousal known as panic attacks.

A mood-stabilizing drug that centrally includes the physical element lithium; the classic drug of choice for treatment of bipolar disorder.

Professionals whose training and professional activities are similar to those of clinical psychologists, but with particular emphasis on the provision of advice regarding not only mental health, but also personal and vocational development.

A set of biological mechanisms in the circulatory system that prevents most substances in the bloodstream from entering brain tissue.

Reference book that comprehensively lists and classifies mental disorders, specifying diagnostic criteria.

An exposure therapy that reduces fear by exposing clients to feared objects in a slow, gradual manner.

In humanistic therapy, the therapist’s understanding of the client’s psychological life from the perspective of the client.

Any type of psychological therapy in which a therapist meets with two or more clients together.

Long-lasting psychological states involving strong and persistent feelings of anxiety that interfere with everyday life.

(of emotion) In exposure therapy, the reduction in emotional response that occurs when an anticipated emotionally arousing consequence does not occur.

A psychological therapy in which therapists try to improve mental health by changing the way in which clients think, reducing negative, self-defeating thoughts.

Fears directed toward particular objects or situations, such as fear of flying, heights, spiders, or closed-in spaces.

Therapy that draws upon any therapeutic method available, with the therapist combining the methods of different therapy schools in designing an optimal approach for therapy in general or an individual client.

A period of abnormally high energy, arousal, and often positive mood that can be accompanied by reckless behavior.

Prolonged experiences of psychological distress or poor psychological functioning that interfere with a person’s everyday life; mental disorders.

A family of psychological disorders that include feelings of sadness and hopelessness, fatigue, loss of interest in activities, changes in eating and sleeping patterns, and that continues for weeks.

A therapy approach in which therapists try to identify and change interpersonal problems contributing to clients’ psychological distress, especially by reducing clients’ social isolation.

A research procedure to evaluate the effectiveness of therapy in which neither the research participants nor the researcher interacting with them knows the condition of the experiment to which the participant has been assigned.

A disorder characterized by extreme levels of anxiety and self-consciousness specifically in situations involving other people.

A mental disorder involving both recurring, intrusive thoughts about potential danger or harm (obsessions) and repetitive actions (compulsions) taken to prevent the imagined dangers and harms.

A behavior therapy technique in which therapists reward desirable behavior with tokens that serve as reinforcers, making the behavior more likely to reoccur.

A type of psychotherapy in which therapists help clients identify and understand the root causes of their psychological symptoms.

A display of respect and acceptance toward others that is consistent and not dependent on their meeting behavioral requirements.

A behavior therapy technique in which therapists combat the emotions of fear and anxiety by bringing clients into direct contact with an object or situation that arouses their fear, while ensuring that no harm occurs.

A disorder in which individuals experience some (but not necessarily all) of the following symptoms: depressed mood lasting at least two weeks, loss of interest in daily activities, changes in weight and sleep, fatigue, feelings of worthlessness and hopelessness, difficulty concentrating, and thoughts of suicide.

In psychotherapy, an active-listening technique in which the therapist recurringly summarizes statements made by the client, “reflecting” the content back to the client.

A mental disorder characterized by flashbacks to previously encountered highly stressful experiences, such as military combat or sexual assault.

Chemical substances small enough to cross the blood–brain barrier that affect psychological processes of perception, thinking, or emotion.

A therapy strategy grounded in research on learning, in which therapists aim to directly alter clients’ patterns of behavior by teaching more adaptive ways of behaving.

Drugs typically used to treat epileptic seizures but that also are used to reduce bipolar symptoms.

A therapy method for changing negative, irrational thoughts by increasing clients’ awareness of their automatic thoughts, challenging those thoughts, and suggesting positive alternative ones.

Professionals trained not only in principles of psychological science, but also in the application of those principles to the diagnosis of, and provision of therapy for, psychological disorders.

An outmoded surgical procedure for treating mental disorders in which a surgeon would damage brain tissue in the frontal cortex.

A method of both personality assessment and therapy devised by Freud in which psychologists encourage people to let their thoughts flow freely and say whatever comes to mind.

A psychological therapy in which therapists provide clients with supportive interpersonal relationships; the quality of the relationship between therapist and client is key to the client’s growth and change.

In the treatment of psychological disorders, interventions that directly alter the biochemistry or anatomy of the nervous system.

Pharmaceuticals designed to alleviate depression by increasing serotonin activity through interference with the biochemical process known as reabsorption or reuptake.

Pharmaceuticals designed to alter brain functioning by affecting neurotransmitters in a manner that reduces feelings of anxiety.

An episode of extreme fear, including high levels of physical arousal, that occurs suddenly and without apparent cause.

The psychotherapy strategy originally developed by Sigmund Freud; a type of insight therapy.

Drugs designed to reduce symptoms of bipolar disorder by affecting neurotransmitters in a way that calms and steadies a patient’s mood swings.

The presence of symptoms of two or more disorders in any one individual.

A depressive disorder in which individuals experience depressed mood during late autumn and winter, periods when there is less sunlight.

Professionals who provide psychological therapies.

Thoughts that spring to mind rapidly and unintentionally.

Framework for thinking about the causes of, and treatments for, psychological disorders in a way that mimics thinking about physical illnesses.

An agitated emotional state that includes feelings of apprehension about impending danger or misfortune.

A psychoanalytic process in which a patient unintentionally responds emotionally to a therapist as if the therapist were a significant figure from the patient’s past, such as a parent.

Physicians trained in the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders, with particular emphasis on the biological basis of disorders and the use of drugs to combat them.

A depressive disorder characterized by extreme variations in mood, from severe depression to mania.

A type of therapy for obsessive-compulsive disorder in which therapists cause clients to come into contact with the stimuli that trigger their obsessions while preventing them from engaging in their usual compulsive behavior.

Strong, persistent fears caused by situations that pose little or no actual threat.

Treatments whose effectiveness is established in carefully controlled experimental research.

A biological therapy for severe depression in which electrical currents are delivered to the brain.

A psychological disorder in which people experience high and persistent levels of tension, agitation, apprehension, and worry, even in the absence of a current event that provokes the feelings.

In the treatment of psychological disorders, treatment with pharmaceuticals that alter the biochemistry of the brain to improve emotional state and thinking abilities.

The current edition of the DSM manual, published in 2013 with substantial changes in content.