A Moral Test

Robert Fettgather is an associate faculty member at Mission College in Santa Clara, California, where he has taught courses in developmental psychology, general psychology, abnormal psychology, psychiatric interviewing, and developmental disabilities. Robert Fettgather has published articles in the field as well as addressed state and national conferences.

Societal views of people with mental illness change with time. Social views intersect with government/public policies, laws, and regulations related to mental illness.  Most of you have heard and perhaps even studied political terms like liberal and conservative.  According to researchers, a “liberal era” between 1960 and 1980 in the United States was characterized by a commitment to individual rights and fairness. Liberal politician Hubert Humphrey once said,

“the moral test of government is how that government treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the elderly; and those who are in the shadows of life, the sick, the needy, and the handicapped.” 

The “neoconservative era” that followed focused on majority concerns and on law and order. Neoconservative austerity measures led to cuts in many programs that benefit people with mental disorders.  The tension between liberal and neoconservative political factions continues to this day.

REFLECTION POINT:

Do you agree with the sentiment that the way individuals with mental illness (and other socially marginalized groups) are treated by a society is an important measure of the success of that society?

Memory: True or False?

 

Robert Fettgather has taught at San Jose State University, National University and Mission College in Santa Clara.  In addition, Robert Fettgather has addressed State and National Conferences on a variety of topics.

The false memory syndrome has frequently been observed while people are under hypnosis. Research by Loftus has asserted that for a person to interpret a false event as a true memory a couple of things must happen. Specifically, the event must seem plausible.  Second, the individual should be given data/information that supports the belief that the event could have actually happened to them personally.

If you have watched some dramas based on our legal system, you no doubt know how fictional attorneys esteem the eye witness in the court room.

Elizabeth Loftus has spent over thirty years studying the reliability of eyewitness memories. She has demonstrated, and that what people see and hear about an event after the fact can actually affect the accuracy of their recollections for that event. Following a traumatic childhood experience with a false memory,  Loftus began to study rich false memories. In your text, these are characterized by “the subjective feeling that one is experiencing a genuine recollection, replete with sensory details, and even expressed with confidence and emotion, even though the event never happened”.

Many factors can complicate remembering. Automatic encoding is a term used to describe the memory process when we aren’t actively paying attention to the information. A flashbulb memory is a certain type of a kind of automatic encoding.  It happens when a surprising and often emotional event occurs. Flashbulb memories often embrace a great deal of detailed information, however, they might not be as accurate as they appear.

Midlife Career Reflection

The Institute for Personality and Ability Testing has certified Robert Fettgather as a Stress Management Trainer, and Medical Hypnosis Seminars of the Los Gatos Institute has certified him in Clinical Hypnotherapy.  At Santa Clara University, Graduate Department of Education and Counseling Psychology, Robert Fettgather's studies included Health Education and Behavioral Medicine. He has completed Hospice Training with Hospice of the Valley.

Job satisfaction peaks in middle age; however, work takes on a less important role in an adult’s overall sense of well-being during these years. Most middle-aged adults continue to be highly productive in their careers. What makes work satisfying? Apart from a paycheck, there are intangible values.

But the job world for some  middle aged adults, and many young adults sinks to stagnating lows embodied in cultural euphemisms like TGIF, or the grind of a Monday, or the relief coming if only we can get past Wednesday, hump day. Some students feel the same way. 

Career Stagnation is real of course. This detailed, worthwhile  and somewhat technical articleLinks to an external site. (link to article) analyzes underlying issues and potential solutions. Many who take this course are preparing for a career and my wish for you all is that it is a satisfying one. 

Some of you enrolled in the class are in the process of changing careers.  Anxiety and depression sometimes accompany both involuntary and voluntary midlife career changes. Voluntary career changers leave one career to pursue another for a variety of internal reasons, such as finding a new job that is more fulfilling. Involuntary career changers are people who are in transition because of external reasons: Their skills have become obsolete, their jobs have been eliminated through organizational restructuring, or they have been laid off because of shifting economic conditions. They experience heightened levels of anxiety and depression and higher risk of physical illness in the months after the job loss. Re-employment seems to restore health, emotional stability, and a sense of well-being quite rapidly.

The notion of retirement is relatively new and tends to be exclusive to industrialized cultures. Preparation for retirement includes financial literacy and  planning, as well as a decline in the number of hours a middle-aged adult works each week. Meaningful activity seems to aid the retirement process. Spending most of their time sitting around with minimal activity would not be a typical approach of Boomer retirees!

Reflection Point: Speculate as to the retirement possibilities and plans of members of the Generation X cohort and the Millennial  cohort. How are they similar to and different from the Baby Boomers?

Abnormal Psychology Concepts: Then and Now

 Robert Fettgather, PhD, has served as an associate faculty member at Mission College in Santa Clara, California, since 1983. When he is not leading courses in general, developmental, and abnormal psychology, among other subjects, Robert Fettgather enjoys hiking and boating.

Abnormal psychology is a distinct branch of psychology focused on atypical behavioral patterns and uncommon emotions and thoughts that may qualify as mental disorders. 

In modern times, aspects of this psychological discipline can be traced back to Karl Jaspers, who published the book General Psychopathology in 1913. It was an instrumental title in reframing interpretations of individual mental experiences, particularly those that might be considered unusual or out of the ordinary. Over the course of more than a century, the discipline has evolved to emphasize in-depth, medical-based studies of various mental illnesses, which may be caused by factors as diverse as genetics and social influence.

Psychopathology is the focus on the underlying disease processes or pathology, causing the abnormal behavior. Abnormal psychologists may study several clinical and personality disorders. One of the most common behavioral disorders in the United States is attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). ADHD refers to impulsive actions and the inability to focus on a single topic or activity. It is usually diagnosed and treated in childhood, with a prevalence rate of approximately 9.4 percent. However, a 2019 study found that ADHD prevalence in adults had nearly reached 1 percent, doubling over a decade. It is not clear whether the trend represents sound medicine or diagnostic inflation. Personality disorders include obsessive-compulsive personality disorder (OCPD), narcissistic personality disorder, and borderline personality disorder. Interestingly, OCPD is different than a similarly named disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). OCPD is characterized by a preoccupation with perfectionism and a staunch dedication to rules and standards. Behaviors associated with OCD include repeated obsessions and compulsions. Treatment options for OCD generally involve exposure and response prevention, cognitive behavioral therapy, and a regimen of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors.

Historically, abnormal psychology was preceded by various religious traditions including shamanism that involved rituals such as incantations and exorcisms. Trephining, involving drilling a hole directly into the skull, was utilized as an attempt to promote healing by the early Greeks and the Chinese. Primitive and dangerous ancient methods can overshadow reasonable contributions from Tradiotional Chinese Medicine, including some herbal interventions.