Thursday, September 14, 2006

Abnormal Psychology...


One of my newest classes is Abnormal Psychology. I think the inherent flaw in this course is that there is so much of a gray area and so many different sources stating absolutes. The way the information has been presented so far is a bit scattered and very much with a heavy bias towards one way as opposed to others. I don't know if I necessarily like it or not.

It's also a bit scary. One part of the class is devoted to watching case studies of individuals who range from mild afflications to severe cases.

The other part is that we're given diagnosis sheets where you evaluate the subject. It is so easy to answer the questions yourself... and sometimes with a "clinically crazy" result.

However, there was a quote that I quite liked.

*In volume two of the 1959 American Handbook of Psychiatry lobotomist Walter Freeman writes:

What the investigator misses the most in the more highly intelligent individuals is the ability to introspect, to speculate, to philosophize, especially in regard to the self... Creativeness seems to be the highest form of human endeavor. It requires imagination, concentration, visualization, self-criticism, and persistence in the face of frustration, as well as trained manual dexterity...

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