Conceptualizing Mental Health and Illness Flashcards
What are 2 possible definitions for mental health?
- mental health is the freedom from suffering, abnormal behaviour, and distress
- mental health is the absence of mental illness
What 3 concepts need to be considered when defining mental health and illness?
Distress, abnormality, and dysfunction
Define Distress
Mental = feelings of awareness, cognition, and behaviour Health = associated with feeling good Illness = connotes feeling bad
Define Abnormality
mental health and illness are constructs of normal and abnormal (assume abnormal = unhealthy)
Define Dysfunction
person’s mental status makes it difficult for them to meet daily needs and fulfill typical responsibilities
- influenced by resources and environment
How does WHO define mental health?
- individual realizes his or her own abilities
- can cope with normal stresses of life
- can work productively and fruitfully
- is able to contribute to one’s own community
Advantages and Disadvantages to WHO definition
Advantages:
- ambitious and universally agreeable
Disadvantages:
- the ability to make a contribution to one’s community depends on a variety of factors (sexism, racism, and culture)
DSM Strengths and Limitations
Strengths:
- flexible definition
Limitations:
- lack of solid and universally agreed-upon evidence
- states social deviant behaviour is not a sign of mental disorder unless it’s a result of dysfunction
What are the 4 models of mental health and illness?
- Biomedical model
- Psychological-behavioural model
- Social model
- Biopsychosocial model
Describe the Biomedical Model theory
- perceives mental health and illness as binary (mentally ill OR mentally healthy
- mental illness disrupts a person’s health like a disease
- no biomarkers
Describe the Biomedical Model treatments
Brain-based intervention
- psychopharmaceuticals - reduce symptoms
- Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) - electric currents that induce seizures (depression)
- Genetic Interventions (future treatment)
Describe the Psychological-Behavioural Model theory
- considers mental disorders to be patterns of thinking, feeling, and behaving that are harmful to individuals
- mental illness arises as a result of person experiences and perspectives
Describe the Psychological-Behavioural model treatments
- Psychotherapy
- talking and thinking with practitioner - Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
- Psychodynamic therapy
- Humanistic treatment
- Existential approach
Describe the Social model theory
- mental health is a social product (good or bad mental health are socially constructed and produced)
-emphasis on social environment
power and culture lead to labelling people as mentally ill
Describe the Social Model treatments
- Social Interventions
- supported housing and employment - Demedicalizing
- look at social causes rather than causes of mental distress
Describe the Biopsychosocial Model theory
- biological factors, social conditions, and our own personal experiences all contribute to mental health
- social = social determinants of health
What is the DSM?
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual
- description of diagnosis
- checklist of symptoms
- practitioner observes and speaks with patient to make diagnosis
What is the ICD?
International Center of Disease
- also used by researchers, governments, and health insurance companies
- defines what counts as a mental illness, who is deemed “sick” or unwell, and whether the costs of treatment are covered
What are clinical scales?
- tool used to measure mental state with a series of “standard” questions
- answers given are used to determine severity of condition
3 causes of bias in Diagnosis
- Practitioner bias
- race, gender, weight, training - diagnostic criteria
- may make some individuals more likely to be diagnosed with a particular condition - DSM is based on Euro-American behaviour norms
- lead to over-, under-, or misdiagnosis of individuals from other backgrounds
- unrecognized race / class bias among those creating diagnostic criteria
