The essence of abnormal psychology - David A. Holmes

This book presents a concise introductory text, covering the core topics of abnormal pyschology in one short volume. The book highlights essential information needed by students, thus can also be easily read by those with little previous knowledge of the subject, and it covers a wide range of material that is in-depth and to a high academic standard. The book is divided into two parts; an introduction to the area followed by the main categories of abnormal behaviour as they are currently classified. Thus the definition, history, treatment, diagnosis and context of abnormal behaviour are clarified before coverage of the individual disorders. The major areas of mental disorder following the DSM classification are then described, evaluated and illustrated by case studies. In addition, other aspects of abnormal psychology such as community health, legal and forensic issues are explained, along with descriptions of the work of the many professionals involved. For the lay reader, there is a glossary of the technical terms used and suggested further reading for each chapter. For the advanced student, a comprehensive reference section has been included at the end of the book, together with chapter summaries and self-test questions at the end of each chapter.