12 votes
Accepted

Is there a mental condition that makes people unconditionally gullible?

Some neurodegenerative diseases cause extreme gullibility, in particular Alzheimer Using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), the scientists were able to determine which parts of the brain govern a ...
Fizz's user avatar
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11 votes

Is there a mental condition that makes people unconditionally gullible?

Worldbuilding may have beaten you to this: https://worldbuilding.stackexchange.com/a/99881/15591 Williams Syndrome is not, strictly-speaking a purely mental condition. It is "caused by a genetic ...
Jeutnarg's user avatar
  • 211
9 votes
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How do we know bipolar is one illness rather than two comorbid illnesses?

Short answer: Bipolar disorder is probably not composed of two comorbid illnesses, but it may be on a continuum that includes some depressive disorders. This is a good question, though it does convey ...
Arnon Weinberg's user avatar
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9 votes

Omitting word(s) when typing

In his 2003 psycholinguistics book, John Field has summarized (pp. 70-72) his own typing errors and combined them with an older corpus of Hotopf. Missing words were among the frequent errors, but alas ...
Fizz's user avatar
  • 10.2k
8 votes

Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy Limitations

I came across this question whilst researching CBT for a course I am studying. The short answer As I will cover in the long answer, there has been a lot of articles stating that CBT is very effective, ...
Chris Rogers's user avatar
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8 votes
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What is the relationship between rejection sensitive dysphoria and ADHD?

Upon closer examination, it appears that Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria is a term that was coined by Dr. William Dodson to describe the phenomenon of rejection sensitivity in ADHD sufferers. It does ...
Sydney Maples's user avatar
8 votes
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Were the subjects in the Stanford prison experiment randomly assigned to the study?

The subjects in this experiment were randomly assigned in two groups (prisoner versus guard). They were all healthy and without any identified psychological issues. I quote from the Setting-Up page ...
AliceD's user avatar
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8 votes

Is the Flynn effect autism?

The Flynn effect refers to the tendency over the last century or so for IQ scores to increase each generation by a few points. There is no link between vaccination and autism. It is pseudo-scientific ...
Jeromy Anglim's user avatar
8 votes

Is a low Emotional Intelligence (EQ) pathological?

Shortly , a low EQ is not a sufficient condition to diagnose a mental psychiatric disorder. This is the DSM-V Proposal for the Definition of Mental/Psychiatric Disorder All these features have to be ...
Fil's user avatar
  • 1,524
8 votes
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Is "not going to doctor because of fear of illness" a psychological disorder?

What you are describing is most likely avoidance, which in itself isn't a disorder. People are most likely afraid of the illness in itself, and so not going to the doctor means that they don't have ...
Liz D.'s user avatar
  • 385
8 votes
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Is there a scientific explanation for dramatic body shaking and trembling in religious settings? (see videos for illustrative examples)

The exhibited behaviours are episodic glossolalia, collapsing, fainting, trembling, jerking, convulsing, contorting, and shaking. The individuals performing these episodic behaviours report ...
Tony Mobbs's user avatar
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7 votes

Does a mental disorder exist where people think someone else is sick?

There is a condition called hypochondriases by proxy (e.g., Moreira & Moreira, 1999). It is also referred to as vulnerable child syndrome (Pacurar et al., 2015). The parent, particularly if (s)he ...
AliceD's user avatar
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7 votes

What are the effects of hebephilia on victims?

I thought I would edit to add a bit of information. First of all for those who don't know, (I didn't until I looked it up when I saw this question for the first time), the term hebephilia has been ...
Chris Rogers's user avatar
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7 votes
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Is autism caused by genetics?

In light of a recent question in MedicalSciences.SE, I thought I would update this answer to include some information from my answer there. Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) now affects one in 68 births ...
Chris Rogers's user avatar
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7 votes
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Can listening to sad songs lead to depression?

If you are talking about clinical depression as an illness, the direct answer to your question is: I don't know. There was a study of the effect of different genres of music on how people felt (...
Pharmama's user avatar
6 votes

What is the relationship between rejection sensitive dysphoria and ADHD?

You might want to look at Bondü, R. & Esser, G. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry (2015) 24: 185. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-014-0560-9 The authors found fairly compelling evidence of a latent ...
Bill McCown's user avatar
6 votes
Accepted

Why was MPD changed to DID?

DID is one of the most controversial psychiatric disorders, with no clear consensus on diagnostic criteria or treatment. To answer your question on why MPD was renamed DID, for completeness, there is ...
Chris Rogers's user avatar
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6 votes

Why is the initial first-line response to a psychological problem not a brain scan?

The first stop when a non-emergency medical issue evolves is, as you say, a visit to the GP. This is not a supplement to diagnosis. Instead, a visit to the GP can be a critical step in the treatment ...
AliceD's user avatar
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6 votes

What is a phobia against babies or kids called?

A rather cursory search brought me to the wikipedia page for fear of children: Pedophobia: [The] fear of children, fear of infants or fear of childhood [..]. This as opposed to a pathological ...
AliceD's user avatar
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6 votes
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What disorder might be considered opposite of the Histrionic Personality Disorder?

Diagnosis of personality disorders in general is moving away from a categorical system (patient does or does not have the disorder), to a dimensional system (patient scores extreme on personality ...
Arnon Weinberg's user avatar
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5 votes

Are mentally ill people more violent?

Part of the very basic components of abnormal psychology suggests that any behaviour that could be dangerous to oneself or another individual could qualify for a diagnosis for mental illness. But, ...
Dog's user avatar
  • 116
5 votes

Is there a standard definition of a "hallucination"?

Elliot et al. (2008) define a hallucination as: A sensory experience which occurs in the absence of corresponding external stimulation of the relevant sensory organ, has sufficient sense of reality ...
AliceD's user avatar
  • 20.5k
5 votes

How does one distinguish BPD anger from ADHD anger?

Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is a complicated diagnosis to understand and treat. A painful mix of emotional trouble, unstable relationships and self-destructive behavior, including suicide ...
Dorian Townsend's user avatar
5 votes

Do bullies pick on sociopaths?

As a percentage of their endeavours, do those with a tendency to use bullying focus more or less on sociopaths as a per capita of their targets? Thanks for this interesting question. Based on my ...
Peter Slattery's user avatar
5 votes
Accepted

Can PTSD be mild? Do the traumas have to be of a certain kind?

In order for something to be diagnosed as a disorder by a mental health professional, the client typically experiences distress and impairment in activities of daily functioning. If the time frame ...
J. L. Ever's user avatar
5 votes

Is talking to oneself loudly a very common sign of schizophrenia?

Before I answer this question, I would like to point out that at the bottom of Schizophrenia.com is a disclaimer, and part of it says No health information on Schizophrenia.com, including ...
Chris Rogers's user avatar
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5 votes
Accepted

Are there official guidelines to provide "mental first aid" to people attempting suicide?

This is a good question as according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), close to 800,000 people die due to suicide every year, which is one person every 40 seconds. (WHO, n.d.) Calling the ...
Chris Rogers's user avatar
  • 12.1k
5 votes

Does James Holmes diagnosis of schizotypal personality disorder indicate a predisposition for mass murder?

So the question is does schizotypal personality disorder explain lifelong homicidal ideation / obsession, or predisposition to same? Schizotypal personality disorder does include paranoid ideation ...
Fizz's user avatar
  • 10.2k
5 votes
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How to help people who may suffer from Paranoia?

I'm not active on this board, so please forgive me if my answer is not up to community standards. I am not a psychologist, but I have some experience with mental illness (maybe too much.) True ...
anongoodnurse's user avatar

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