To describe someone as abnormal is circumstantial. What could be considered abnormal in one culture could be considered perfectly normal in another or even in the same culture a few years later. A way of defining abnormality is very pragmatic – it is whatever is labeled abnormal by the majority of people within a culture – a social definition. This means, for example, that killing someone is abnormal; but not in times of war. To take another example, to decide not to seek medical treatment for a serious condition is abnormal. However, it is not abnormal among, say,
Christian Scientists or members of similar religious groups. Even paranoia might be seen as normal among a group of spies. A further problem with terming something as abnormal and then classifying it in some way, for example, as schizophrenia, can lead to self-fulfilling prophecies. If someone is classified with a label that is within the abnormal range, then this creates expectations among those around them about how they will behave and leads not only to the greater likelihood of such behavior but also puts them at enormous disadvantages in life.Abnormality is also defined as whatever is maladaptive for the individual or for those around the individual. If you are so anxious that you are unable to leave the house, this is clearly maladaptive for you. If you are consistently inconsistent in the way that you deal with others, then this is clearly maladaptive for them.
