Psychological Analysis of Precious, the movie

Psychological Analysis of Precious

Part 1: Section A

The movie under analysis is Precious and the character whose diagnosis will be presented is Precious herself. Claireece Precious Jones, referred to as precious throughout the movie has been played by the actress Gabourey Sidibe who made her acting debut with precious. The movie revolves around Precious who lives with her abusive mother Monique and step father Rodney. Precious lives in the New York Ghetto Harlem and they survive on welfare since the mother faces unemployment. Precious has critical eating disorders and finds comfort in constant eating. The movie is based on the novel Push by Sapphire (Albers, 2009).

Part 1: Section B

Mental Status Examination of Precious

Claireece Precious Jones is a female who is 16 years old, a black American. Precious is Obese. Her overall appearance is normal she dresses decently according to what she can afford. Precious is a victim of various psychological traumas and anxieties she faces constant child abuse, rape, domestic violence, incest, physical and mental abuse. She suffers from low self esteem. Her father constantly molests her and her mother forces her to have sex with her step father which results in her getting pregnant twice. She suffers from eating disorders and often escapes from her real life trauma into her world of imagination where she is loved and cared for. Her mother suffers from anxiety and Precious is forced to run the house as well. She has no friends and is mocked by people due to her over weight.

Multiaxial Diagnostic of the DSM-IV-TR

Axis 1:

Precious suffers from Generalized Anxiety, Social Anxiety disorder, Post Traumatic Stress, eating disorders specifically bulimia nervosa, relational problems, problems related to abuse and neglect, and bipolar disorder.

Axis 2:

Precious suffers from Paranoia, anti social disorder and borderline personality disorder

Axis 3:

Precious suffers from HIV.

Axis 4:

The factors contributing towards the development of mental illness in precious are all subjugated by; lack of support, disturbed relationship between family, educational problems, guilt and shame associated with rape and pregnancies and financial difficulties.

Axis 5:

Precious's overall performance shows signs of anxiety; she struggles at school and hardly interacts with people (Psychology Classroom, 2005)

Part 1: Section C

Any person who loses the will to live and considers themselves as useless suffer from severe depression precious faces immense difficulties in life, she has no family relations, her mother hardly shows any sympathy and she goes on in life feeling unloved. Precious has no friends people ignore her like she is nonexistent. Her mother lets her father rape her, nothing could be more traumatic then being raped, what makes precious's rape far more worse is the fact that her own father molested and raped her. Rape usually leaves people losing their faith and trust in people, incest victim's struggle a lot more since the perpetrator is someone they loved and trusted. There is a scene where her own mother calls her and asks her to please her. Her eating disorder is evident in the scene where she steals chicken and hides to eat ...