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With reference to two core approaches to psychology, critically explore how these have furthered an understanding of the bases of mental illness’£5.19
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2001PY CW1 ‘With reference to two core approaches to psychology, critically explore how
these have furthered an understanding of the bases of mental illness’
Mental illness and health problems affect 1 in 4 people in the United Kingdom,
(McManus et al. 2016) with 1 in 6 of those being diagnosed with a common mental health
issue such as anxiety and depression. Mental disorders contribute to 13% of global disease,
with major depression expected to be the largest contributor to this by 2030 (Jacob 2012).
With mental illness affecting so many people, it can and does have a real-world impact on
things like crime, sport and even the economy. With 800,000 suicides happening each year
according to World Health Organisation (2014) there is a huge loss of human life and
therefore potential. Thus, preventing this should be of high concern to doctors and
psychologists alike. There are many approaches psychologists can take on mental health like
social, developmental and individual differences. However, this paper will focus on the
biological and cognitive approaches regarding anxiety and depression. While both have a
good knowledge and basis in understanding of mental illness like depression and anxiety,
they both differ in terms of reasoning and theories. This paper will look at how each approach
attempts to understand mental illness and how the approach has developed over time. It will
explore anti-depressant drugs, genetics, comparative methods, The Valence Hypothesis and
frontal brain asymmetry (FBA). Both have relevant material and understanding of depression
and anxiety, but both take completely different approaches while still remaining similar in
some areas like empirical evidence and methods of proving studies such as the use of the
comparative method.
, The biological approach focuses more on genetics and physiology and how these
factors may affect mental health. The approach investigates behaviour, thoughts and feelings
from a biological and therefore physical point of view. One major dispute in psychology is
the nature versus nurture argument. Those siding with the nurture side of the deliberation
propose that it is the environment that has the most significant impact on determining
behaviour. The biological approach however, inclines to the importance of nature, genetics,
hormones and chemical levels in the brain. For example, a biological psychologist may argue
that a patient with depression has low levels of dopamine or serotonin (Arnsten et al. 2015) as
opposed to a social psychologist suggesting the depressed state may be from a childhood
experience or the environment.
It can be argued that the biological psychology approach started with Darwin’s
Voyage of the Beagle in 1805-1836. This expedition saw the origins of the theory of natural
selection via observing animals while roaming the world. This correlation between animal
behaviours and those of humans would later be referred to as the comparative method
(Romanes, 1864). The comparative method suggests that different species of animals may be
compared and studied and then linked into the context of human behaviours. The key
principle of Comparative Psychology is the idea that cognitive processes are biological
variations with evolutionary origins, thus allowing for a recording of cognitive resemblances
and alterations between different species such as humans and apes (Liebal et al. 2012).
Psychologist’s current understanding of the development and evolution of human cognition
comes from the study of non-human species, in particular that of apes and chimps, furthering
our understanding of how human brains operate and function (Johnson-Pynn et al. 1997).
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