Abnormal Behavior in Secret Window - Research Paper Example

Abnormal Behavior in Secret Window Looking at the case of Mort Rainey from the Hollywood film Secret Window, this essay will attempt to uncover the reasons for the development of a mental disorder in the subject, paying close attention to the influences of biology, emotions, psychological and culture on the subject's psyche.Rainey is an author, and the movie starts off by revealing how he catches his wife committing an extramarital affair. As the movie continues, Rainey's abnormal behavior is displayed:, there are many instances where his behavior is guided by a voice inside his head, and there are episodes of depression, periodic snapping of the jaws, moments where he blacks out, and he also burns down his ex-wife's home, murders many individuals including his pet dog, ex-wife and her new husband, and experiences violent outbursts, nightmares and sleeplessness.

Also, it is revealed that Rainey suffers from a dissociative identity disorder; the audience witnesses this when it is revealed that the character of John Shooter who pursues Rainey and accuses Rainey of plagiarizing his book is in fact not real, but simply Rainey's alter ego. It is also important to explain why the audience would perceive Rainey's behavior as abnormal; in the time frame that the film was made, 2004, behaviors such as murdering one's pet, burning down an ex-wife's house, being depressed, displaying symptoms of a dissociative personality disorder, is something that is against many norms of society.

In my own society for instance, there is a lot of value attached to life and private property rights, and the murders and the house Rainey burned down all indicate how his behavior is against social norms. A useful approach in studying abnormal behaviors is the multidimensional model; the Psychological well being, or PWB, is the instrument put forward by Ryff to measure the psychological well-being of individuals, and it proposes a multi-fold analysis rather than a "single, unidimensional" explanation for behavior (Abott et al, 2006).

The six components of the PWB are identified by Ryff as "Self-Acceptance, Environmental Mastery, Purpose in Life, Positive Relations With Others, Personal Growth, and Autonomy," (Ryff & Keyes, 1995). The Multidimensional model offers a well-rounded explanation for abnormal behavior by examining the biological, psychological, social, behavioral and emotional influences on behavior (Durand & Barlow, n.d). Looking at Rainey and keeping the PWB in mind, it is found that he displays symptoms of low psychological well being.

From the social view, Rainey has " lower levels of self-acceptance and positive relations with others," (Ryff & Singer, 2006) because he is divorced from his wife; he often is hostile with his ex-wife and her new husband. He also has low environmental mastery, seen from the way his life at home is disordered; he often sleeps on the couch in the living room, eats snacks instead of cooked meals, and he has a servant to do all the household chores. He also has low personal growth since he is not "open to new experiences," (Springer & Hauser, n.d) seen from his inability to accept his ex-wife's infidelity and her new husba