, Robinson compared the American Psychological Association (APA) as “corrupt ref
ID: 3493223 • Letter: #
Question
, Robinson compared the American Psychological Association (APA) as “corrupt referees”. What point is Robinson attempting to make and what is meant when he stated that: “Just like that, Asperger’s was gone”…“You can do things like that when you publish the rules”. How does the concept of normalcy relate to psychiatric diagnoses created / modified by the APA? Does abnormalcy always imply deficit, pathology, or inferiority? List and describe how the definition of normalcy is determined (hint: there are 5 factors). How might this definition relate to the public stigma model?
Explanation / Answer
The statement is a challenge to the APA for bringing about modofications in their terminology of disorders based on everyday comments brought about by the public. Some of them have been seen to be useful in the past since terms that are more respectful are now beingt used to describe people with disabilities. This tends to reduce the stigma/taboo around disabilities to some degree. The concept of normalcy is related to the modofications brough about by APA in their description of disorders in order to be more specific as to how the 'atypical' individuals are different from the typical ones. Also, abormalcy does not always relate to deficits, pathology or inferiority. An individual with asperger's, for instance, may be looking at situations and tasks differently which makes her/his perspective unique and valuable. It is a well established fact that people on the spectrum tend to view minute details and pick up them up more obviously than the larger picture. This simply means a different and valuable world view which may have unique details to offer. They have deficits in certain areas of functioning whereas they may excel in many others. This means that traditional/conventional teaching-learning methodology may not work best for them and fostering the creativity and unique strengths is to be aimed at.
According to previous research, the term normal had no fixed definition since it was defined in light of what was 'abnormal' which made its legitimacy questionable. Psychologists now claim that measuring through statistical means and classifying individuals needs closer outlook.
Related Questions
Navigate
Integrity-first tutoring: explanations and feedback only — we do not complete graded work. Learn more.