Factors Underlying Abnormal Behaviour

INTRODUCTION

Psychology deals with the study of emotional and mental disorders that hinder an affected individual’s day-to-day activity. The emotional and mental disorders may lead to a series of very unusual activities, which can be termed as abnormal behaviour. The peculiar behaviour trait not only affects the distressed individual but also significantly messes with others around them. The factors underlying abnormal behaviours are essential, which can unravel the concept of deviant behaviour. Abnormal behaviour can develop because of different factors, for example, abuse. It has been extensively studied that abuse can contribute highly to abnormal behaviours not only in humans but also in animals.

Concept of Normal and Abnormal Behaviour

A particular behaviour can be accepted as usual in one culture but may not be accepted in another culture and is therefore termed as abnormal behaviour, which signifies that culture plays an important role psychologically in understanding a particular behaviour. The expected behaviour in an individual is said to be normal behaviour. For example, a person shouting and cheering for their favourite team is entirely normal behaviour. Our society has an expected norm or value that is the code of conduct, and unless and until an individual is following it, they have normal behaviour. If an individual goes against the code of conduct, they are said to have abnormal behaviour. This may be because of various life experiences faced by that very individual. Some examples of abnormal behaviours are dysfunction when an individual cannot control emotions and actions, deviance where the abnormal behaviour is deviant to the social norms and OCD or obsessive-compulsive and related disease, which is a type of anxiety disorder. Some effects minor behaviour while others can become a part of their day to day behaviour.

Factors Underlying Abnormal Behaviour

Abnormal behaviour is mainly caused by three known factors :

Biological factor: Genes comprise 90% of our personality traits, and we acquire them from our parents, or we can say some sets of genes are passed on and on from one generation to the other. The traits of abnormal behaviour can also be genetic and can be passed on from one generation to the other. Schizophrenia is an example of abnormal behaviour; a specific pattern of genes in a person makes them more vulnerable to the mentioned disease than others. This pattern of genes can be genetically passed on from one generation to another. Other than genes, further biological factors that contribute efficiently to the abnormality of one’s behaviour are neurotransmitters and hormones. Imbalance in neurotransmitters like GABA, norepinephrine, etc., causes abnormal neural plasticity or brain dysfunction. Again imbalance of hormones like dopamine serotonin can cause mood and anxiety disorder which can affect all together health of an individual. 

Psychological factor: Psychological factors mainly interfere with how an individual deals with external and internal stress. The reflection of his behaviour shows how well they can control their emotions or illogical fear and can have a huge impact on their life experiences and learnings. The incoherent development of the superego or even lack of superego can slowly develop into irrational and abnormal behaviour. The feeling of inferior or superior can attack a persons’ subconscious and then their conscious mind leading to very unusual behaviour and thoughts which are contrary to the norm of society. This type of behaviour is not entirely abnormal but may need a diagnosis to resolve the debate. 

Socio-cultural factor: The term socio-cultural refers to various institutions with different radii, for example, family and friends or neighbourhood or even the policies of a particular country. Comparison and discrimination remain the top factors influencing socio-cultural factors for abnormal behaviour. The comparison between IQ or wealth or even looks can result in psychological disorders. The person becomes more conscious about their existence leading to deviant behaviours. Discrimination based on gender, race, nationality, religion, marital status, colour, etc., can affect the mental state of an individual, leaving them mentally disrupted or may even develop an illogical fear. Abuse can also leave a mental scar and develop abnormal behaviour in an individual. Toxic parenting, where parents discriminate or compare their children or abuse them physically or verbally, can deteriorate the mental well-being of those children. Children start to show abnormal behaviour like losing interest in studies, developing trust issues and even being scared of stating their opinions, which begin to compromise their mental development.

Approaches to Abnormal Behaviour

Research has shown that to control and explain abnormal behaviour. Three main approaches have been used generation after generation. The bio-psycho-social model of illness usually focuses on what is the actual reason for the abnormal behaviour, is it biological, where genes have contributed or hormonal imbalance due to lifestyle and socio-cultural stress. Here three main approaches historically used through ages to control and understand unusual behaviour are biological, supernatural and psychological traditions. When taking into account abnormal behaviour, one must consider several theoretical perspectives or multiple casualties. Diathesis is another model which interacts with a person’s stress response. The diathesis model explains beautifully how a person with a high-stress level or low stress coping capacity is more prone to disorders like abnormal behaviour. When the factors are accessed, it becomes easy for a doctor or therapist.

CONCLUSION

Abnormal behaviour develops slowly, feeding upon the mental wellness of an individual. Initially, abnormal behaviour remains overlooked and undiagnosed and slowly develops into different psychological disorders. The first step toward treatment or control of any abnormal behaviour is to understand the factors responsible for abnormal behaviour and also the concept of abnormal behaviour and how it differs from the culture or society. Once the underlying factors are disclosed, the person can be treated accordingly. Now an individual may recover on their own after a short period without any treatment. This may be because of the environment or their mental willingness, but others may need proper treatment.