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MODERN TRENDS IN PSYCHOLOGICAL TREATMENT

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Historyand Systems of Psychology ­ PSY502
VU
Lesson 38
MODERNTRENDS IN PSYCHOLOGICALTREATMENT
Methods of psychological treatment have been varied throughout the history andhave evolved withthe
passage of time. As psychology moved from the science of speculation, perceived by great philosophers
such as Socrates, to the scientific study of human behavior, methods of treating psychological diseasesalso
havebeen adapted with the changing outlook. Differentschools of psychology focused on different aspects
of psychological problems andall developed their owntechniques and methods to get rid of these
problems.
Nowadays,according to the universally acceptedstandards, we can roughlydivide mental diseases intotwo
broad categories:
·
Lesssevere ones: Neurosis
·
Moresevere ones;Psychosis
It would be interesting to note thatover the world, there aretwo manuals available forclassification of
diseases,namely:
·
InternationalClassification of Diseases(ICD)
·
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual(DSM)
Theformer has been developed by the World Health Organization while the latter has been developed by
the American Psychiatrist Association.Psychologists from all over the world got together to develop these
manuals.These list all the knownmental diseases up to date.
Movingtowards the treatment of mental diseases, depending upon the nature of diseaseand the extent of
severity,two categories of treatmentshave emerged:
a) Psychologicalapproaches or methods of treatment
b) Biologicalapproaches or methods of treatment
Thepsychological method of treatment is the approach in which the patient is nottreated withmedicines.
Instead, the patient in this approach is treatedwith the help of psychological treatment, which means the
psychologiststry to find the root cause of the disease and then try to treat the patient by just listening and
talking about the problem or disease. In otherwords, the psychologist focuses on discovering the root cause
of the problem that the patientfaces and tries to eliminate the problem through just talking to the patient,
making him change his attitudeetc. In this technique, no medicine is given to the patient. It involves
methodssuch as psychotherapy. Methodssuch as group therapy, family therapy, etc. are also a part of this
mode of treatment.
In the biological approach, the patient is treated not only by listening and discussing the problembut also
throughmedicines. The psychiatristadvises/recommends some medicines. Usually the psychiatrist advises
medicineswhich help the patient to relax himself. In other words,biological approach focusesnot only on
solving the patient's problem through talkingand discussing; it alsoinvolves use of medicine forthe
treatment of mental diseases.
Let us delve deep into the twoapproaches towards the treatment of mental diseases.
a) Psychological Approaches
As mentioned earlier, the psychological approachfocuses on treatment of mental diseases by allowing the
patient to vent out what is creating the problem. It does not involve the use of medicine.
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Historyand Systems of Psychology ­ PSY502
VU
Psychologicalapproach may be dividedinto:
·
Psychodynamic methodologies
·
Behavioral methodologies
·
Cognitive methodologies
·
Humanistic methodologies
·
AndGroup methodologies of treatment
Let us take a look at some of them:
ThePsychodynamicmethodologies arebased upon the assumptionthat psychological problemsand
diseasesare caused by unconsciousimpulses and unresolved past conflicts. So Psychodynamic
psychotherapiststry to discover thoseunconscious motivations andhelp the patient resolve hispast
conflicts. Some times patient doesn'tknow the actual cause of hisdisease and thus gets mentally disturbed,
butsome times the patient knowsthat he or she had someunresolved past conflicts or somebad memories
whichare now disturbing him. So the Psychodynamic psychotherapists have to find the reason if the patient
don'tknow or is unable to relatehis past with hispresent problem.
Viewpoints of some famous psychologistsare important to be noted in this regards. These include Freud's,
Adler's,Jung's or Horney's viewpoints. Sigmund Freud gave the concept of unconsciousand motivations;
AlfredAdler gave the concept of inferiority feelings whichare caused due to organicinferiority and may
result in inferiority complex; Jung gave the concept of collective unconscious; KarenHorney related some
neurotic needs which every individualstrives for. Therefore, psychodynamic methodologies have evolved
over time with the contributions of manygreat psychologists.
Anotherapproach is called Behavioralapproach to treat mental diseases. This approachstems from the
behavioral school of psychology. It is based upon Pavlovian concept of conditioning.
In this regard, "Systematic Desensitization" is a method developed by Joseph Wolpe which is used to treat
somemental disorders. This method involves exposure of certainelements to the individual whichmay be
causingfear etc. For example,gradual exposure of snake to removes fear of snakes.
Thethird method that is employed in this category of treatment of mild mentaldiseases is what is termed as
Cognitivetherapy. Cognitive therapy is based upon the assumption that mentalproblems are caused by
faultythinking. The therapist corrects this faulty thinking, relieving the symptoms of the patient. Thepatient
in this kind of thinking assumesthat he is not good, or he cannot do something good, feels unconfidentand
feelsthat he/she is not being taking cared of. So the therapist try to remove this kind of thinking, from the
patient's mind to make him feel confident and being caredof. Albert Ellis used Rational Emotive Behavior
Therapy (REBT) under this method of treatment.
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Table of Contents:
  1. INTRODUCTION:Methodology, Grading, Course Overview up to Midterm
  2. ANCIENT GREEK PHILOSOPHY/PSYCHOLOGY:Socrates, Plato
  3. GREEK THINKERS:Aristotle, Contiguity, Contrast
  4. PSYCHOLOGY IN THE 5TH TO 12TH CENTURY:Saint Augustine, Avicenna
  5. PSYCHOLOGY IN THE 5TH TO 12TH CENTURY:Al-Ghazali, Ibn-Rushd, Averroes
  6. RENAISSANCE:Rene Descartes
  7. ASSOCIATIONISTS:Thomas Hobbes, John Locke
  8. ASSOCIATIONISTS:David Hume, FRENCH REVOLUTION, Denis Diderot
  9. GERMAN CONTRIBUTION:Wilhelm Liebniz, Immanuel Kant, Friedrich Hegel
  10. INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION:RUSSIAN CONTRIBUTIONS
  11. RUSSIAN CONTRIBUTIONS:Ivan Pavlov, Reflex, Acquisition
  12. RUSSIAN CONTRIBUTIONS:Vladimir Bekhterev
  13. IMPACT OF PHYSICAL SCIENCES ON PSYCHOLOGY:Charles Darwin, Gustav Fechner
  14. STRUCTURALIST SCHOOL OF PSYCHOLOGY:Wilhelm Wundt
  15. FUNCTIONALISM:William James, John Dewey
  16. EUROPEAN FUNCTIONALISTS:David Katz, Edgar Rubin, Jean Piaget
  17. BEHAVIORISM:Edward Lee Thorndike, Law of belongingness
  18. BEHAVIORISM:Albert Weiss, Edwin Holt, Learning, Canalization, Walter Hunter
  19. BEHAVIORISM:J.B.Watson
  20. NEO-BEHAVIOURISTS:Clark Hull, Edward Tolman, Edwin Gutherie
  21. NEO-BEHAVIORISTS:B.F. Skinner, Karl Lashley, Donald Hebb, Hobart Mowrer
  22. GESTALT PSYCHOLOGY:Max Wertheimer, Similarity, Proximity, Closure
  23. GESTALT PSYCHOLOGY:Wolfgang Kohler, Kurt Koffka, Edward De Bono
  24. GESTALT SCHOOL AND DYNAMIC PSYCHOLOGY:Kurt Lewin, DYNAMIC PSYCHOLOGY
  25. HISTORICO-EVOLUTIONARY PSYCHOLOGY:Leon Vygotsky, Sergei Rubenstein
  26. HISTORICO-EVOLUTIONARY PSYCHOLOGY:Alexei Leontiev, K.M Bykov
  27. SCIENTIFIC LOOK AT MENTAL DISORDERS
  28. SCIENTIFIC LOOK AT MENTAL ILLNESS:Philippe Pinel, Sameul Tuke
  29. SIGMUND FREUD AND THE PSYCHOANALYTIC MOVEMENT:The Superego
  30. SIGMUND FREUD AND PSYCHOANALYTICAL MOVEMENT:Anna Freud
  31. CARL JUNG AND ANALYTICAL PSYCHOLOGY:Carl Gustav Jung
  32. JUNG’S ANALYTICAL PSYCHOLOGY:Carl Gustav Jung
  33. ALFRED ADLER AND INDIVIDUAL PSYCHOLOGY:Alfred Adler
  34. NEO-FREUDIANS:Harry Stack Sullivan, Karen Horney
  35. NEO-FREUDIANS:Karen Horney, Erich Fromm
  36. ERIKSON and MORENO:J.L. Moreno, Protagonist, Audience, Role playing
  37. HUMANISTIC PSYCHOLOGY:Abraham Maslow, Carl Rogers, Positive Psychology
  38. MODERN TRENDS IN PSYCHOLOGICAL TREATMENT
  39. MODERN TRENDS IN PSYCHOLOGICAL TREATMENT:Biological Approaches
  40. ANTI-PSYCHIATRY MOVEMENT:D.L. Rosenhan, R.D. Laing, Aaron Esterson
  41. PSYCHOLOGY IN THE THIRD WORLD:Frantz Fanon
  42. PSYCHOLOGY IN THE THIRD WORLD CHINA AND PAKISTAN
  43. PSYCHOLOGY IN THE 21st CENTURY
  44. PSYCHOLOGY IN THE 21ST CENTURY:Consumer Psychology
  45. PSYCHOLOGY IN THE 21ST CENTURY:Sports Psychology, Positive Psychology