Voyeur Eyes Only

 

Voyeurism

• Voyeurism is believed to be the most common paraphilic disorder (Hooley, et al. 2019). Someone can be diagnosed with voyeuristic disorder if they have recurrent, intense sexually arousing fantasies, urges, or behaviors involving the observation of unsuspecting people who are undressing or of couples engaging in sexual activity (Hooley et al. 2019). Voyeurism is often accompanied by exhibitionism, and it is also associated with interest in sadomasochism and cross-dressing.

Why do some people adopt this behavior?    

• Here are the DSM-5 criteria for a Voyeuristic Disorder:

• 🟦Over a period of at least 6 months, recurrent and intense sexual arousal from observing an unsuspecting person who is naked, in the process of disrobing, or engaging in sexual activity, as manifested by fantasies, urges, or behaviors. 
• 🟦The individual has acted on these sexual urges with a nonconsenting person, or the sexual urges or fantasies cause clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning.
• 🟦The individual experiencing the arousal and/or acting on the urges is at least 18 years of age.

Voyeurism is not usually linked to other serious crimes. Most people have voyeuristic urges, but they are usually prevented by the risk of being caught and ethical concerns about privacy.

References

 Hooley, J. M., Nock, M. K., & Butcher, J. N. (2019). Abnormal Psychology (18th ed.). Pearson Education (US). https://bookshelf.vitalsource.com/books/9780135191033

When is a Paraphilia not a Paraphilia??

When a Paraphilia Becomes a Disorder

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 Paraphilic disorders are characterized by recurrent, intense sexual fantasies, urges, or behaviors that are atypical in terms of their targets, context, or participants, and that cause significant distress or impairment in the individual's life. These urges and behaviors generally involve (Hooley et al., 2019) :

1. abnormal targets of sexual attraction such as objects or children\
2. unusual courtship behaviors such as watching someone undress without their consent or exposing themselves to others without consent.
3. the desire for pain and suffering of oneself or other people.

🟥Paraphilias challenge the authors of DSM editions for two main reasons (Hooley et al, 2019):

1. Some paraphilias are considered pathological even if the person experiencing the symptoms does not experience any distress.
2. Some other categories of paraphilia may be compatible with psychological health and happiness if all parties are of age and willfully consent.

The DSM-5 distinguishes between paraphilias and paraphilic disorders (Hooley et al. 2019).

🟥Paraphilias are defined as unusual sexual interests that cause no harm to either person or others.

🟥Paraphilic disorders - are defined when paraphilias cause suffering to anyone involved.

• Although mild forms of these conditions occur in many people's lives, a person with the disorder is distinguished by the intensity and the exclusivity with which their sexuality focuses on the acts or objects in question (Hooley, et al. 2019).  For instance, in some cases, orgasm is not attainable without these acts or objects.
• These disorders can also be compulsive requiring someone to orgasm as often as four to ten times per day.
• Most people with paraphilic disorders are male.

 The DSM-5 recognizes eight specific paraphilic disorders that can be classified into several different subtypes (Hooley, et al. 2019): 

1. Voyeuristic
2. Exhibitionistic
3. Frotteuristic
4. Sexual sadism
5. Sexual Masochism
6. fetishistic
7. transvestic 
8. pedophilic

There is also another specified paraphilic disorder which includes several rare disorders (Hooley et al. 2019):

• Scatologia - obscene phone calls
• Necrophilia - the sexual desire for corpses
• Zoophilia - sexual interest in animals
• Apotemnophilia - sexual excitement and desire about having a limb amputated
• Coprophilia - sexual arousal to feces

References

Hooley, J. M., Nock, M. K., & Butcher, J. N. (2019). Abnormal Psychology (18th ed.). Pearson Education (US). https://bookshelf.vitalsource.com/books/9780135191033

“The Triple Threat: Exploring the Interplay of ADHD, Insomnia, and Internet Gaming Disorder”

Does ADHD affect the relationship between circadian typologies, insomnia, IGD

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• Recently a study was done to evaluate the relationships between circadian typologies, insomnia, and internet gaming disorder and how ADHD affects this relationship.

Researchers took three groups of 69 young adults (Lin et al., 2023) :

1. A group with Internet Gaming Disorder
2. A control group - comprising age and sex-matched nongamers
3. A group of gamers without IGD was established through diagnostic interviews.

• The participants with IGD exhibited lower composite scale of morningness scores and thus a higher eveningness preference (Lin et al., 2023).
• The group with IGD scored higher on the Pittsburgh insomnia rating scale.
• The participants with IGD and ADHD exhibited lower CSM scores but higher PRIS_20 scores than the participants with IGD but without ADHD (Lin et al., 2023).

🟥These findings indicate that participants with IGD experienced more severe insomnia and preferred to be awake more in the evening.

🟥ADHD exacerbated the eveningness preference and insomnia of the subjects with IGD.

🟥The study suggests that we need to pay close attention to sleep problems in people with IGD and especially in those with ADHD

🟥Why is this study important?

• Well gaming technology has advanced considerably in recent decades, and more people have access to the internet. And now there is a new global mental health concern which is Internet Gaming Disorder or IGD.
• The DSM-5-TR notes that IGD must cause "significant impairment or distress" in several aspects of a person's life ( 2023).
• Scholars have found that excessive internet gaming is associated with maladaptive gaming beliefs and can lead to psychological consequences such as depression and interpersonal impairment
• Because inadequate or nonrestorative sleep can remarkably reduce a person’s quality of life, understanding the association between IGD and sleep is crucial. Research has indicated that IGD is related to low sleep quality, limited sleep time, and subjective insomnia. Insufficient experimental evidence is currently available regarding the sleep patterns of individuals with IGD.

🟥Therefore understanding circadian typologies among individuals with IGD is essential

References

Lin, Y. J., Yen, J.-Y., Lin, P.-C., Liao, H.-Y., & Ko, C.-H. (2023). Circadian typologies and insomnia in individuals with internet gaming disorder comorbid with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Scientific Reports, 13, 12764. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-39462-2

(2023). internet Gaming (J. ShererM.D., Ed.) [Review of internet Gaming]. American Psychiatric Association; American Psychiatric Association. Retrieved September 2, 2023, from https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/internet-gaming

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Introspection

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• The founders of experimental psychology used the methods of experimental introspection which involved asking subjects to focus on their personal reflections and then relate them to outside signals.
• Most of the subjects were male and asked to rate their experiences on a one to ten-point scale. Psychologists at the time believed that introspection could be used to study mental elements such as sensations and feelings.

🟩There were limitations of introspection

🟩Introspection was not appropriate for studying complex psychological processes.

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Mary Calkins' self-psychology

Calkins was a psychologist who understood the limitations of introspection. Her new approach to psychology focused on the self which had three founding concepts (Shiraev, 2016) :

1. The self
2. The object
3. The self's relation or attitude toward that object.

Two levels of the self  (Shiraev, 2016):

1. contents of consciousness
2. environment in which the content unfolds.

• Calkins's self-psychology was influenced by the work of William James, another early psychologist who was critical of introspection.
• Introspection in psychology declined by the early 20th century
• Calkins's self-psychology was also influenced by the work of the philosopher Josiah Royce, who argued that the self is not a fixed entity, but rather a process of becoming.
• James proposed a theory of the self that emphasized its dynamic and ever-changing nature.

References

 Shiraev, E. (2016). Personality Theories: A Global View. SAGE Publications, Inc. (US). https://bookshelf.vitalsource.com/books/9781506300795