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It was the spring of 1981. Over the previous eight months, the Philadelphia Phillies had won the World Series, and the Eagles, Sixers, and Flyers had made it to the Super Bowl, NBA Finals, and Stanley Cup Finals, respectively. I had two adorable children ages 5 and 3. I had been granted tenure at Princeton. My life was full—
Then, Linda Chaput, at that time an editor at W. H. Freeman and Company and Worth Publishers, walked into my office. During a lively discussion, she and I discovered that we had similar ideas about how abnormal psychology should be presented in a textbook. By the time Linda departed two hours later, we had outlined the principles that should underlie the “ideal” abnormal psychology textbook. We had, in effect, a deal. All that was left was for me to write the book. A decade later, the first edition of Abnormal Psychology (“the BOOK,” as my family and I had come to call it) was published, followed a few years later by the first edition of Fundamentals of Abnormal Psychology.
As I look back to that fateful day in 1981, I cannot help but note that several things have changed. With a few exceptions, my Philadelphia sports teams have returned to form and have struggled year in, year out. My sons have become accomplished middle-
At the same time, several wonderful things remain the same. I am still at Princeton University. I am still married to the same near-
My textbook journey has been a labor of love, but I also must admit that each edition requires enormous effort, ridiculous pressure, and too many sleepless nights to count. I mention these labors not only because I am a world-
With this in mind, I have added an enormous amount of new material and many exciting new features for this edition of Fundamentals of Abnormal Psychology—while at the same time retaining the successful themes, material, and techniques that have been embraced enthusiastically by past readers. The result is, I believe, a book that will excite readers and speak to them and their times. I have again tried to convey my passion for the field of abnormal psychology, and I have built on the generous feedback of my colleagues in this undertaking—
In line with the many changes that have occurred over the past several years in the fields of abnormal psychology, education, and publishing, and in the world, I have brought the following new features and changes to the current edition.
•NEW• DSM-
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DSM-
•NEW• TECHNOLOGY AND THE “MINDTECH” FEATURE The breathtaking rate of technological change that characterizes today’s world has had significant effects on the mental health field. In this edition I cover this impact extensively, including many discussions in the book’s narrative, boxes, photographs, and figures. The book examines, for example, how the Internet, texting, and social networks have become convenient tools for those who wish to bully others or pursue pedophilic desires (pages 373, 465, 466); how social networking may provide a new source for social anxiety (page 129); and how today’s technology has helped create new psychological disorders such as Internet addiction (page 343). It also looks at dangerous new trends such as the posting of self-
In addition, I have added a new feature throughout the book called MindTech— sections in each chapter that give special attention to particularly provocative technological trends in engaging and enlightening ways. The MindTech features examine the following cutting-
Mental Health Apps Explode in the Marketplace (page 21)
Social Networking Sites: A Researcher’s Paradise? (page 24)
Have Your Avatar Call My Avatar (page 67)
Rorschach on Wikipedia: Psychology’s Wiki Leaks? (page 83)
Social Media Jitters (page 129)
Virtual Reality Therapy: Better Than the Real Thing? (page 163)
Texting: A Relationship Buster? (page 207)
Crisis Texting (page 243)
Can Social Media Spread “Mass Hysteria”? (page 255)
Dark Sites of the Internet (page 294)
Neknomination Goes Viral (page 315)
“Sexting”: Healthy or Pathological? (page 368)
Can Computers Develop Schizophrenia? (page 396)
Putting a Face on Auditory Hallucinations (page 410)
Selfies: Narcissistic or Not? (page 446)
Children Online: Parent Worries on the Rise (page 470)
Remember to Tweet: Tweet to Remember (page 510)
New Ethics for a Digital Age (page 549)
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•NEW• “INFOCENTRALS” It is impossible to surf the Internet, watch TV, or flip through a magazine without coming across infographics, those graphic representations that present complex data in quick, stimulating, and visually appealing ways. Infographics present information in a way that allows us to easily recognize trends and patterns and make connections between related concepts. With the development of new digital tools over the past decade, the popularity of infographics has exploded. Readers and viewers like them and learn from them.
Thus Fundamentals of Abnormal Psychology, Eighth Edition, introduces a new feature called InfoCentral—numerous, lively infographics on important topics in the field. The infographics provide visual representations of data related to key topics and concepts in each chapter, repeatedly offering fascinating snippets of information to spur readers’ interest. I am certain that readers will greatly enjoy these special offerings, while also learning from them.
Every chapter features a full-
Happiness (page 19)
Dietary Supplements: An Alternative Treatment (page 43)
Common Factors in Therapy (page 101)
Mindfulness (page 115)
Sexual Assault (page 156)
Sadness (page 185)
The Right to Commit Suicide (page 240)
Sleep and Sleep Disorders (page 264)
Body Dissatisfaction (page 287)
Smoking and Tobacco Use (page 320)
Sex Throughout the Life Cycle (page 350)
Hallucinations (page 390)
Lying (page 457)
Bullying (page 466)
The Aging Population (page 506)
Personal and Professional Issues (page 551)
•NEW• ADDITIONAL CUTTING-
Flawed Study, Gigantic Impact (Chapter 1)
Saving Minds Along with Souls (Chapter 2)
The Fear Business (Chapter 4)
Immigration and Depression in the 21st Century (Chapter 6)
When Doctors Discriminate (Chapter 8)
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•NEW• “CLINICAL CHOICES” INTERACTIVE CASE STUDIES This eighth edition of Fundamentals of Abnormal Psychology includes 11 new interactive case studies (one for each of the disorders chapters), available online through LaunchPad, our online course management system. Through an immersive mix of video, audio, and assessment, each interactive case allows the student to simulate the thought process of a clinician by identifying and evaluating a virtual “client’s” symptoms, gathering information about the client’s life situation and family history, determining a diagnosis, and formulating a treatment plan. The student will also answer various questions about each case to help reinforce the chapter material. Each answer will trigger feedback, guidance, and critical thinking in an active learning environment.
•NEW• ADDITIONAL AND EXPANDED TEXT SECTIONS Over the past few years, a number of topics in abnormal psychology have received special attention. In this edition, I have provided new sections on such topics, including the psychology of mass killings (pages 434), the impact of the Affordable Care Act (pages 17, 547), the growing role of IRBs (pages 32–
•NEW• ADDITIONAL CASE MATERIAL One of the hallmarks of my textbooks is the inclusion of numerous and culturally diverse clinical examples that bring theoretical and clinical issues to life. In my continuing quest for relevance to the reader and to today’s world, I have replaced or revised more than one-
•NEW• CRITICAL THOUGHT QUESTIONS A very stimulating and popular feature of my previous edition of Fundamentals of Abnormal Psychology was the “critical thought questions”—questions that pop up within the text narrative, asking students to pause at precisely the right moment and think critically about the material they have just read. Given the enthusiastic response to this feature by professors and readers alike, I have added many new critical thought questions throughout the textbook, including ones in the MindTech and MediaSpeak features.
•NEW• “BETWEEN THE LINES” The textbook not only retains but also expands a fun and thought-
•NEW• THOROUGH UPDATE In this edition I present the most current theories, research, and events, including more than 2,000 new references from the years 2013–
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•EXPANDED COVERAGE• PREVENTION AND MENTAL HEALTH PROMOTION In accord with the clinical field’s growing emphasis on prevention, positive psychology, and psychological wellness, I have increased the textbook’s attention to these important approaches (for example, pages 16–
•EXPANDED COVERAGE• MULTICULTURAL ISSUES Over the past 30 years, clinical theorists and researchers increasingly have become interested in ethnic, racial, gender, and other cultural factors, and my previous editions of Fundamentals of Abnormal Psychology certainly have included these important factors. The study of such factors has, appropriately, been elevated to a broad perspective in recent years—
•EXPANDED COVERAGE• “NEW-
•EXPANDED COVERAGE• NEUROSCIENCE The clinical field continues to witness the growth and impact of remarkable brain-
As I noted earlier, in this edition I have also retained the themes, material, and techniques that have worked successfully and have been embraced enthusiastically by past readers.
BREADTH AND BALANCE The field’s many theories, studies, disorders, and treatments are presented completely and accurately. All major models—
INTEGRATION OF MODELS Discussions throughout the text, particularly those headed “Putting It Together,” help students better understand where and how the various models work together and how they differ.
EMPATHY The subject of abnormal psychology is people—
INTEGRATED COVERAGE OF TREATMENT Discussions of treatment are presented throughout the book. In addition to a complete overview of treatment in the opening chapters, each of the pathology chapters includes a full discussion of relevant treatment approaches.
RICH CASE MATERIAL As I mentioned earlier, the textbook features hundreds of culturally diverse clinical examples to bring theoretical and clinical issues to life. More than 25 percent of the clinical material in this edition is new or revised significantly.
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MARGIN GLOSSARY Hundreds of key words are defined in the margins of pages on which the words appear. In addition, a traditional glossary is available at the back of the book.
ROLLING SUMMARIES Instead of waiting until the end of a chapter for a summary, SUMMING UP sections appear throughout each chapter, at the completion of each major section, helping students to better retain the material under discussion.
“PUTTING IT TOGETHER” A section toward the end of each chapter, “Putting It Together,” asks whether competing models can work together in a more integrated approach and also summarizes where the field now stands and where it may be going.
FOCUS ON CRITICAL THINKING The textbook provides tools for thinking critically about abnormal psychology. As I mentioned earlier, in this edition, “critical thought” questions appear at carefully selected locations within the text discussions. The questions ask readers to stop and think critically about the material they have just read.
CHAPTER-
STRIKING PHOTOS AND STIMULATING ILLUSTRATIONS Concepts, disorders, treatments, and applications are brought to life for the reader with stunning photographs, diagrams, graphs, and anatomical figures—
ADAPTABILITY Chapters are self-
I have been delighted by the enthusiastic responses of both professors and students to the supplements that accompany my textbooks. This edition offers those supplements once again, revised and enhanced, and adds a number of exciting new ones.
WORTH VIDEO COLLECTION FOR ABNORMAL PSYCHOLOGY Produced and edited by Ronald J. Comer, Princeton University, and Gregory Comer, Princeton Academic Resources. Faculty Guide included. This incomparable video series offers 128 clips that depict disorders, show historical footage, and illustrate clinical topics, pathologies, treatments, experiments, and dilemmas. Videos are available in LaunchPad and on the Video Collection for Abnormal Psychology Flash Drive. I also have written an accompanying guide that fully describes and discusses each video clip, so that professors can make informed decisions about the use of the segments in lectures.
INSTRUCTOR’S RESOURCE MANUAL by Charlie Harris, Clayton State University and Danielle Gunraj, SUNY Binghamton. This comprehensive guide ties together the ancillary package for professors and teaching assistants. The manual includes detailed chapter summaries, lists of principal learning objectives, topic overviews, ideas for lectures, lecture outlines, discussion launchers, classroom activities, extra credit projects, and DSM criteria for each of the disorders discussed in the text. It also offers strategies for using the accompanying media, including the video collection. Finally, it includes a comprehensive set of valuable materials that can be obtained from outside sources—
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• Lecture Slides available at http:/
• Illustration Slides available at http:/
• Chapter Figures, Photos, and Tables available at http:/
TEST BANK by Chrysalis Wright, University of Central Florida. A comprehensive test bank offers more than 2,200 multiple-
DIPLOMA ONLINE COMPUTERIZED TEST BANK Available for both Windows and Macintosh at http:/
CASE STUDIES IN ABNORMAL PSYCHOLOGY, SECOND EDITION, by Ethan E. Gorenstein, Behavioral Medicine Program, New York–
LAUNCHPAD with LearningCurve Quizzing—
A comprehensive Web resource for teaching and learning psychology, LaunchPad combines Worth Publishers’ award-
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LaunchPad to Accompany Fundamentals of Abnormal Psychology, Eighth Edition, can be previewed at www.launchpadworks.com.
Fundamentals of Abnormal Psychology, Eighth Edition, and LaunchPad can be ordered together with:
ISBN-
ISBN-
LaunchPad for Fundamentals of Abnormal Psychology, Eighth Edition, includes the following resources:
• The LearningCurve quizzing system was designed based on the latest findings from learning and memory research. It combines adaptive question selection, immediate and valuable feedback, and a gamelike interface to engage students in a learning experience that is unique to them. Each LearningCurve quiz is fully integrated with other resources in LaunchPad through the Personalized Study Plan, so students will be able to review with Worth’s extensive library of videos and activities. And state-
• An interactive e-
• Clinical Choices, authored by Taryn Myers, of Virginia Wesleyan College. In these 11 interactive case studies in LaunchPad, students simulate the role of clinical psychologist, engaging with virtual clients to identify psychological disorders (based on DSM-
• Abnormal Psychology Video Activities, produced and edited by Ronald J. Comer, Princeton University, and Gregory Comer, Princeton Academic Resources. These intriguing video cases run three to seven minutes each and focus on persons affected by disorders discussed in the text. Students first view a video case and then answer a series of thought-
• Deep integration is available between LaunchPad products and Blackboard, Brightspace by D2Learn, Canvas, and Moodle. These deep integrations offer educators single sign-
I am very grateful to the many people who have contributed to writing and producing this book. I particularly thank Marlene Comer for her usual outstanding work on the manuscript. In addition, I am indebted to Marlene Glissmann for her fast, furious, and fantastic work on the references. And I sincerely appreciate the superb work of the book’s assistants—
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I am indebted greatly to those outstanding academicians and clinicians who have provided feedback on this new edition of Fundamentals of Abnormal Psychology, along with that of its partner, Abnormal Psychology, and have commented with great insight and wisdom on its clarity, accuracy, and completeness. Their collective knowledge has in large part shaped the current edition: David Alfano, Community College of Rhode Island; Jeffrey Armstrong, Northampton Community College; Wendy Bartkus, Albright College; Jennifer Bennett, University of New Mexico; Christine Browning, Victory University; Megan Davies, NOVA-
Earlier I also received valuable feedback from academicians and clinicians who reviewed portions of the previous editions of Fundamentals of Abnormal Psychology and Abnormal Psychology. Certainly their collective knowledge has also helped shape this new edition, and I gratefully acknowledge their important contributions: Christopher Adams, Fitchburg State University; Dave W. Alfano, Community College of Rhode Island; Alisa Aston, University of North Florida; Kent G. Bailey, Virginia Commonwealth University; Stephanie Baralecki, Chestnut Hill College; Sonja Barcus, Rochester College; Marna S. Barnett, Indiana University of Pennsylvania; Jillian Bennett, University of Massachusetts Boston; Otto A. Berliner, Alfred State College; Allan Berman, University of Rhode Island; Douglas Bernstein, University of Toronto, Mississauga; Sarah Bing, University of Maryland Eastern Shore; Greg Bolich, Cleveland Community College; Stephen Brasel, Moody Bible Institute; Conrad Brombach, Christian Brothers University; Barbara Brown, Georgia Perimeter College; Jeffrey A. Buchanan, Minnesota State University, Mankato; Gregory M. Buchanan, Beloit College; Laura Burlingame-
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I would also like to thank a small group of talented professors who provided valuable feedback that shaped the development of our new, exciting interactive case studies, Clinical Choices, in this new edition: David Berg, Community College of Philadelphia; Christopher J. Dyszelski, Madison Area Technical College; Paul Deal, Missouri State University; Urminda Firlan, Kalamazoo Valley Community College; Julie Hanauer, Suffolk County Community College; Sally Kuhlenschmidt, Western Kentucky University; Erica Musser, Florida International University; Garth Neufeld, Highline Community College; and Jeremy Pettit, Florida International University.
A special thank you to the authors of the book’s supplements package for doing splendid jobs with their respective supplements: Chrysalis Wright, University of Central Florida (Test Bank); Charlie Harris, Clayton State University, and Danielle Gunraj, SUNY Binghamton (Instructor’s Resource Manual); Taryn Myers, Virginia Wesleyan College (Clinical Choices); Mallory Malkin, Mississippi University for Women (Research Exercises); Jennifer Bennett, University of New Mexico (Chapter Quizzes); Ann Brandt-
I also extend my deep appreciation to the core team of professionals at Worth Publishers and W. H. Freeman and Company who have worked so closely with me to produce this edition and many previous editions. The team consists of truly extraordinary people—
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I also am indebted to Kevin Feyen, vice president, digital product development, and Catherine Woods, vice president, content management, who have been so closely involved with my books for many years. In addition, still other professionals at Worth and at W. H. Freeman to whom I am indebted are Lisa Kinne, managing editor; Chuck Linsmeier, vice president editorial, sciences and social sciences; Todd Elder, director of advertising; Kimberly Morgan, editorial assistant; Hilary Newman, director of rights and permissions; Melissa Pellerano and Felicia Ruocco, permissions editors; Chelsea Roden, permissions associate; Michele Kornegay, copy editor; Tina Hastings, proofreader; Ellen Brennan and Marlene Glissmann, indexers; and John Philp, for his outstanding work on the video supplements for professors and students. Not to be overlooked are the superb professionals at Worth and at Freeman who continuously work with great passion, skill, and judgment to bring my books to the attention of professors across the world: Kate Nurre, executive marketing manager; Lindsay Johnson, senior marketing manager; Allison Greco, marketing assistant; Craig Bleyer, national sales manager; and the company’s wonderful sales representatives. Thank you so much.
One final note. As I mentioned in the prefaces of the past few editions, with each passing year I have become increasingly aware of just how fortunate I am. So, once again, at the risk of sounding like a walking cliché, let me say with a clarity that at my current age is sharper and better informed than at earlier points in my life, how appreciative I am that I have the opportunity each day to work with so many interesting and stimulating students during this important and exciting stage of their lives. Similarly, I am grateful beyond words for my extraordinary family, particularly my wonderful sons, Greg and Jon; my fantastic daughters-
Ron Comer
Princeton University
January 2016
Fundamentals of
Abnormal Psychology