alternatives to medical model Flashcards
(16 cards)
behaviourist assumptions and its link to mental illness
born as blank slates, all behaviour is learnt through process through classical/ operant conditioning and/ or social learning
links as phobias can be learnt
psychodynamic assumption and link to mental illness
behaviour is rooted in early childhood experiences and relationships with others
behaviour is influenced by unconscious mind
links through theoretical approach
-unconscious mid on symptoms of early trauma
behaviourist-
classical and operant conditioning
classical conditioning=
an unconditioned stimulus produces an unconditioned response
however a neutral stimulus can be involved
and this can become the conditioned stimulus resulting in a conditioned response
for example
Little Albert uncondition stimulus was loud banging and unconditioned response was fear
the neutral stimulus introduced was rat
however when loud banging was removed, rat became the conditioned stimulus still producing fear which was now conditioned response.
cognitive explanation of mental illness
result of faulty processes
3 main dysfunctional belief themes in people with depression
“I am worthless” “everything i do results in failure” “the future is hopeless”
form negative cog triad = negative view of self, negative view of future, negative view of world
Beck believed for this, trauma or a serious life incident is required
psychodynamic explanation
role of ego in SZ
ego controls demands of id and poower of superego however cold rejecting mother results in a weak, inaffective ego so demands of id cant be controlled, leaving it in charge of personality
resulting in loss of contact with reality as person cannot identfiy where desires and fantasies end and reality begings
ego would normally manage this, however id makes us return to child like state where imagination and reality mix into one distorted view of life
Ssasz aim and background
wrote an essay “myth of mental illness” aimed to review this article
5 main points of Ssasz article
50 years of change in US mental healthcare
is mental illness a medical or legal concept
changing perspectives on human lives and illness
mental illness is in eye of beholder
having an illness doesnt make a person a patient
points made by Sasz in 1960
mental patients are treated no better than prisoners and are unable to leave with psychiatrists acting as judge and jury with no ability to appeal
mental illness is not a disease like a physical disease (no objective emasure)
mental illness doesn’t exist so is follosih to look for causes and cure
reconsiderations by ssasz in 2011
if medicine relies on consent for physical illness why is no consideration needed for treating mental illness (deprivation of liberty)
doctors dont see people as inherently bad when they do something evil, is due to mental illness
all mental health care is regulated and paid for by public money and aim is to prevent danger to patients or others
mental illness is seen as disorder of brain despite no scientific evidence. physical abnormalities may be to blame so is not a mental illness but misdiagnosed mental illness
people have reasons for behaviours that need to be understood rather than treated, overcome obstacles with respect rather than trying to control with medicine
ssasz conclusion
mental illness is a myth
now considered legal concept rather than ,edical
over past 50 years in usa it has become thoroughly medicalised and politicised is a soical construct
described it as “ a gigantic apparatus of molestation” - wrong to treat them, should have right and liberty to define and control their own lives
sasz issues and debates
ethical- doesnt break any guidliness as no pps used
nuture- rejects biological basis, says is social construct
holism- criticises medical model being reductionist, holistic as believes symptoms are real but diagnosis is not
usefulness- useful as allows us to question effectiveness, appropriateness and moraity of psychological treatment
free will- individuals with mental illness should have free will and choice over whether they want any treatment
ssr- socialy sensitive, stigma and discrimination to those with mental illness as states it is not real
unscientific
behaviourist treatment
systematic desensitisation
as phobias can be learned, can also be unlearned
aims to gradually get ppl to face fears
fear response assosiated with situation is replaced with calm
procedure:
stage 1= given training in relaxation techniques
stage 2= asked to image situations that will create anxiety and build up hierarchy from least fear provoking to most fear provoking
stage 3= pps asked to work through hierarchy in steps using real life exposure, building from least fear to most
in each stage, pps encouraged to relax and no advancement is made to next stage until relaxation is achieved as it is impossible to be relaxed and anxious at same time
cognitive treatment
CBT
takes place once a week or fortnight between 5 and 20 session
involves changing negative thoughts into happy ones
often asked to keep a diary so they can identify how to react with certain events
once identifed negative patterns they will practice replacing them with positive ones during everyday events
overall aims to break negative triad
psychodynamic treatment for sz
psychoanalysis
techniques like dream analysis and free assosication to reach unconscious thoughts and conflicts
free association is told to express thoughts and feelings exactly as they occur in detail, may be about their chilhood
helps them recover unsoncious thoughts and work with anaylst to resolve them
systematic desensitisation strenghts and weaknesses
effective- works at treating cause of phobia not just smyptoms, allows someone to return to everyday life
weakness- unethical, involves placing patients in uncomfortable and distressing situations
cb and psychoanalysis t strengths and weaknesses
strenghts- effective- decreases symptoms
weakness- less useful than other treatments
