Beth Benoit wrote:
>I worry a lot, when teaching abnormal psych., that having the students
>attempt to apply abnormal psychology concepts to themselves can be
>dangerous. They don't have the expertise, of course, and they're very
>vulnerable.
My comments are somewhat tangential to the original message sent out by
Rod Hetzel (which probably is a reflection of my own formal thought
disorder). Instead, I want to reinforce the point made here by Beth.
One lesson I have had to learn again and again over the years as I teach
abnormal psychology is that a number of the students in each class are
very concerned about their own mental functioning. Just this morning, I
received a message from an abnormal-psychology student that had the
following header: "I need to talk." She told me that she is very worried
that she might have one of the mental disorders, which she left
unmentioned, discussed in class. Since we have discussed mostly various
disorders typically characterized by psychotic episodes, I suspect I
know the source of her fears (although I hope I'm wrong).
I have had several students develop psychotic episodes during the
semester (and sometimes show up for class during them) as well as many
more students who complain of more "mundane" problems (such as
obsessive-compulsive symptoms, depression, and eating disorders). Many
students seem to take abnormal psychology because they or a member of
their families are suffering from serious emotional difficulties and
they would like to learn more. Thus, a great deal of sensitivity is
required when teaching such a course. Because I have a very dry (and
often dark) sense of humor that people often misunderstand, I have to be
very careful in a course like this. It seems that there is no mental
disorder I discuss that at least one student in class either fears
having him-/herself or believes a family member to have.
I have nothing more to say than simply to make this cautionary point.
Teaching abnormal psychology, as well as several other psychology
courses, is a completely different experience from my former job
teaching biology courses such as human genetics. In the latter courses,
there was almost always a detachment from the material being discussed
that made it much easier to let one's guard down. That is definitely not
the case now.
Jeff
--
Jeffry P. Ricker, Ph.D. Office Phone: (480) 423-6213
9000 E. Chaparral Rd. FAX Number: (480) 423-6298
Psychology Department [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Scottsdale Community College
Scottsdale, AZ 85256-2626
"Science must begin with myths and with the criticism of myths"
Karl Popper
Listowner: Psychologists Educating Students to Think Skeptically (PESTS)
http://www.sc.maricopa.edu/sbscience/pests/index.html
