Intro Flashcards
The main debates about mental health are…
- What mental illness comes from
- Who “has” it
- How to treat them
Minimalist Perspective to Mental Health
Not having a meantal Disorder means you are Mentally Healthy
Maximalist Perspectove to Meantal Health
Being mentally healthy requires having several qualities like: Empathy, self-confidence, independence, happiness
“Meantal Health” relates to…
People’s thoughts, moods, and behaviours
“Meantal Illness” is a term that refers to …
Situations where Theres a disturbance related to Mood, Thoughts, and Behaviours
“Meantal Disorder” refers to…
Specific subtypes of mental illnesses
What 5 things make mental health different from physical health
- Is not isolated to a part of a body, affects the whole person
- Stigma
- Not always seen as entirely negative
- The power of psychiatrists (forming or sectioning people)
- There are value judgments and no solid answer in mental illness
Who is Involved in Mental Healthcare?
(4 main ones)
- Psychiatrists
- Psychologists
- Social workers
- Psych nurses
- All regulated professions.
- Others involved too (family MDs, peer support workers, occupational therapists, etc.)
Models of Mental Illness
Three broad models dominate how most scholars and clinicians understand what mental illness is, what causes it, and what we should do about it
(What 3 models?)
- Biomedical Model
- Psychological/behavioural mode
- Social Model
The Biomedial Model
Mental disorders are biological diseases which are located in the brain (structure or function)
Involves specific sets of causes, treatments, and symptoms
Bc the issues is biological/physical, the treatment will be biological/physical (ie. Medications, CTE)
Psychological Behavioural Model
Mental disorders reflect internal psychological phenomena located in the abstract mind
unhelpful patterns of thought and/or unresolved feelings
The Social Model
* two models in one
Variant #1
* says we should look at society as the origin of mental illness
- those who are mentally ill are so in large part from their situation/place in society
o Ex. Schizophrenia is more common in poorer parts of societies/communities
o Ppl from dangerous areas have higher level of anxiety
Variant #2
* Argues a persons place in society matters because psych. Disorders are artificial constructs (creations) put together to promote certain types of behaviour and punish others
- Argues psychiatry is the domain of the upper class, things that don’t conform to upper/middle class are considered irregular and bad “conditions” or disorders
What 5 things affect diagnoses for mental disorders (after the interview)
- Subjectivity (line b/t normal and clinical)
- Co-morbidity (overlapping symp./diag. - what / how many do they have?)
- Heterogeneity (experiencing diff symptoms, hard to identify the issue)
- Bias
- Culture
Why is Subjectivity an issue when diagnosing people with mental orders?
(mentioned in Schizophrenia lec)
Subjectivity: where is the line drawn between normal distress and something clinically significant?
- Isn’t a “normal” level of distress reflective of a persons enviornment or culture? What happens when those things aren’t taken into account
Greenberg: “there’s a conflict of interest – if I don’t determine clinical significance, I don’t get paid.”
Why is Co-morbidity an issue when diagnosing people with mental orders?
(mentioned in Schizophrenia lec)
Co-morbidity: When symptoms and diagnoses overlap
- Are they separate issues or two sides of the same coin?
- Does the person have several issues, or one root issue causing all the others?
- Treatments aren’t specific to each disorder, rather that handle several issues
