Medical Model to Treat Psychological Disorders
Medical Model To Treat Psychological Disorders Abnormal Psychology
The medical model of abnormal psychology treats mental disorders in the same way as a broken arm, i.e. there is thought to be a physical cause. Supporters of the medical model consequently consider symptoms to be outward signs of the inner physical disorder and believe that if symptoms are grouped together and classified into a ‘syndrome’ the true cause can eventually be discovered and appropriate physical treatment administered. Behaviors such as hallucinations are 'symptoms' of mental illness as are suicidal ideas or extreme fears such as phobias about snakes and so on. Different illnesses can be identified as 'syndromes', clusters of symptoms that go together and are caused by the illness. These symptoms lead the psychiatrist to make a 'diagnosis' for example 'this patient is suffering from a severe psychosis, he is suffering from the medical condition we call schizophrenia'.
The model assumes biological causes, pathology of the brain, germs or genes. Treatment on the basis of the diagnosis, the doctor will prescribe treatment such as drugs, psychosurgery or electro-convulsive therapy. The film one flew over the cuckoos nest demonstrates the way in which drugs are handed out like smarties merely to keep the patients subdued. As a last result when drugs and ECT have apparently failed psychosurgery is an option. This basically involves either cutting out brain nerve fibres or burning parts of the nerves that are thought to be involved in the disorder (when the patient is conscious). The most common form of psychosurgery is a prefrontal lobotomy. Unfortunately these operations have a nasty tendency to leave the patient vegetablized or ‘numb’ with a flat personality, shuffling movements etc. due to their inaccuracy. Moniz ‘discovered’ the lobotomy in 1935 after successfully snatching out bits of chimps’ brains. It didn’t take long for him to get the
The medical model of abnormal psychology treats mental disorders in the same way as a broken arm, i.e. there is thought to be a physical cause. Supporters of the medical model consequently consider symptoms to be outward signs of the inner physical disorder and believe that if symptoms are grouped together and classified into a ‘syndrome’ the true cause can eventually be discovered and appropriate physical treatment administered. Behaviors such as hallucinations are 'symptoms' of mental illness as are suicidal ideas or extreme fears such as phobias about snakes and so on. Different illnesses can be identified as 'syndromes', clusters of symptoms that go together and are caused by the illness. These symptoms lead the psychiatrist to make a 'diagnosis' for example 'this patient is suffering from a severe psychosis, he is suffering from the medical condition we call schizophrenia'.
The model assumes biological causes, pathology of the brain, germs or genes. Treatment on the basis of the diagnosis, the doctor will prescribe treatment such as drugs, psychosurgery or electro-convulsive therapy. The film one flew over the cuckoos nest demonstrates the way in which drugs are handed out like smarties merely to keep the patients subdued. As a last result when drugs and ECT have apparently failed psychosurgery is an option. This basically involves either cutting out brain nerve fibres or burning parts of the nerves that are thought to be involved in the disorder (when the patient is conscious). The most common form of psychosurgery is a prefrontal lobotomy. Unfortunately these operations have a nasty tendency to leave the patient vegetablized or ‘numb’ with a flat personality, shuffling movements etc. due to their inaccuracy. Moniz ‘discovered’ the lobotomy in 1935 after successfully snatching out bits of chimps’ brains. It didn’t take long for him to get the
References: McLeod, S.A. (2008). Medical Model-Treating Mental Disorders- Simply Psychology. http://www.simplypsychology.org/medical-model.html http://www. Ccvillage.buffale.edu/Abpsy/lecture16.html