... mentally Ill people do behave in a socially deviant way but this doesn't mean that you can base clinical abnormality on this theory alone. Problems Moral standards-social norms change over time and basing mental illness on deviation from social norms is dangerous. Context-for example, wearing few items of clothing on the beach is acceptable, on the high street it is not. Sub Cultures-for example in the Mormon religion it is acceptable to have several wives. In England that is a crime called bigamy Good/Bad-in some certain circumstances being socially deviant is a good thing for example in Nazi Germany people who were opposed to Nazism were socially deviant. Failure to Function adequately Rosenhan and Seligman (1989) suggested seven features of abnormality. Each of which on their own may not be sufficient to cause problem, but when several are present then they are symptomatic of abnormality. * Suffering- most abnormal individuals report that they are suffering. * Maladaptiveness- behaviour that ...

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