Topic 2: Evaluation (Medical Model) Flashcards
How is the medical model useful?
Doesn’t blame people for their actions; a person’s body has created the behaviour not their personality, this leads to more humane treatment
How does the medical model support psychology as a science?
Objective evidence shows that biological malfunctions can lead to psychological symptoms; such as high dopamine levels in schizophrenia
How can the medical model be seen as socially sensitive?
Leads to labelling
Pathologising people whos behaviour we don’t like or cannot explain
Leads to labels being used politically
Is there an issue with concurrent validity?
Yes
ICD and DSM both used as diagnostic tools
Some people may be diagnosed and some might not, even with the same symptoms
Reductionist or holistic?
Reductionist
ignores cognitive, behaviourist and psychodynamic explanations
so there is an incomplete explanation for illnesses, this means that any treatments might not be curative
Nature or nurture?
Nature
suggests people are born to be mentally ill. This deterministic view means that people may believe there is nothing they can do about it. This may lead to learned helplessness
Issues with cause and effect
The biochemical explanation struggles to find cause and effect relationships because it is not known whether the imbalance is the cause of mental illness or whether mental illness is the cause of an imbalance
How is the brain abnormality explanation scientific?
Uses scientific equipment
PET scans + MRI scans
this is objective and replicable
Relate free will to the brain abnormality explanation?
Ignores freewill.
Doesn’t believe we are in control of our behaviour and cognitions
is the brain abnormality explanation on the individual or situational side of the debate?
Individual
individual differences; such as anatomy can cause mental illness regardless of the situations we are exposed to
