Media Assignment – Abnormal Psychology
Psychological disorders are displayed throughout all genres of the film industry. For audiences, disturbances of psychological functioning and behavior are so commonplace in popular media that a disassociation of a serious problem, or, an exaggeration of facts can occur. In the familiar movie, PSYCHO, the main character, Norman Bates, is a classic example of Hollywood’s portrayal of mental illness. He epitomizes the worst in all that we fear about the mentally ill. Norman exhibits traits that positively match all of the criteria, outlined in Essentials of Abnormal Psychology, for determining abnormality; albeit some of his actions could be considered outside of the norm, with regard to several of the said criteria. Explaining these criteria, and how Norman is characterized within the spectrum of this generalization, will describe the positive and negative qualities of the films’ portrayal of mental illness.Psychologists apply several criteria, individually or in combination, to determine if behavior is abnormal. Criteria can include behavior which is: unusual, socially unacceptable or a violation of a social norm, faulty in the perception or interpretation of reality, significantly distressing to the individual, maladaptive
Toward the end of the movie, a psychiatrist, Dr. Richmond, tries to explain it all, saying that Norman had never been the same after his mother and her lover were murdered in front of his eyes. He hypothesizes how a disturbed Norman had an incestuously possessive and jealous love for his mother, so he poisoned both her and her lover after he discovered them in bed together. Traumatized by that horrific event, Norman became a schizophrenic, assuming his mother's personality and killing to get revenge for her fate. Dr. Richmond also explains that Norman dug up the old corpse and kept it near him to maintain the illusion that his mother was still alive so that he could transfer his own guilt for his many murders on to her (Dirks, 2002, p. 2). A disassociated Norman then displays dangerous and delusional behavior though the killing of his female guest and a detective sent to find her. He hears a voice inside himself, his mother’s voice (or a version of her voice). His split personality both envisions and commits the murders, while also being completely unaware. Shortly after discovering the female’s body in the bathroom, a horrified Norman screams out in agony about what his mother has done. Norman Bates is a character one cannot easily forget. The character is so compelling that Hollywood actually made this movie twice! The portrayal of this parti
Some topics in this essay:
Nevid Greene,
Norman Bates,
Abnormal Psychology,
Dr Richmond,
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dirks 2002,
dirks 2002 2,
2002 2,
mental illness,
portrayal mental,
abnormal behavior,
hallucinations delusions,
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psychological disorders,
dr richmond,
female guest,
portrayal mental illness,
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Approximate Word count = 917
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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