Written by a practicing social worker, PSYCHOPATHOLOGY views mental disorders through the strengths perspective and applies a competency-based assessment model for understanding the subject matter. Featuring detailed, realistic vignettes of clinical practice situations, the text offers strategies for building on clients' strengths and resilience, and insights about social workers' role in working with the mentally ill. Part of the Cengage Empowerment Series, the up-to-date fourth edition summarizes the current state of knowledge about mental disorders, including a thorough integration of the DSM-V. It also integrates the core competencies and recommended practice behaviors outlined in the 2008 Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards (EPAS) set by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE).

1. An Introduction to the Competency-Based Assessment Model.
2. Neurodevelopmental Disorders.
3. Schizophrenia Spectrum and Other Psychotic Disorders.
4. Bipolar and Related Disorders.
6. Anxiety Disorders.
7. Obsessive-Compulsive and Related Disorders.
8. Trauma- and Stressor-Related Disorders.
9. Dissociative Disorders.
10. Somatic Symptom and Related Disorders.
11. Feeding and Eating Disorders.
12. Elimination Disorders.
13. Disruptive, Impulse-Control, and Conduct Disorders.
14. Substance-Related and Addictive Disorders.
15. Neurocognitive Disorders.
16. Personality Disorders.

Written by a practicing social worker, PSYCHOPATHOLOGY views mental disorders through the strengths perspective and applies a competency-based assessment model for understanding the subject matter. Featuring detailed, realistic vignettes of clinical practice situations, the text offers strategies for building on clients' strengths and resilience, and insights about social workers' role in working with the mentally ill. Part of the Cengage Empowerment Series, the up-to-date fourth edition summarizes the current state of knowledge about mental disorders, including a thorough integration of the DSM-V. It also integrates the core competencies and recommended practice behaviors outlined in the 2008 Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards (EPAS) set by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE). This edition is thoroughly up to date with the 2008 EPAS requirements as well as the latest information from the new DSM-V. The Table of Contents parallels that of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. The fourth edition has been reimagined around the new DSM-V, and includes four new chapters -- Chapter 2, "Neurodevelopmental Disorders"; Chapter 8, "Trauma- and Stressor-Related Disorders"; Chapter 11, "Feeding and Eating Disorders"; and Chapter 12, "Elimination Disorders." The book views mental disorders through the strengths perspective, offering strategies for building on clients' strengths and resilience as well as insights about social workers' role in working with the mentally ill. Each major diagnostic category is introduced by an in-depth discussion that delineates essential features as well as course and prognosis. This is followed by an illustrative vignette and a differential assessment that further distinguish the essential features of a diagnosis. The author draws on her practice experience by providing case vignettes on situations that social workers commonly encounter in clinical practice. Client stories are told in a style that helps social workers understand each client's unique experience with psychopathology. Cases focus on issues around cultural diversity, ethical issues, and model standards of practice. They serve as a vehicle to look beyond signs and symptoms to understand human behavior in terms of biological, psychological, and social influences. Assessment questions allow students to gauge their competency, while "practitioner reflections" introduce experiential activities aimed at fostering a deeper level of understanding of client disorders. Figures clarify the diagnoses presented and highlight the competency-based assessment.