Mental Illness

Animism

The belief that everyone and everything has a 'soul' and that mental illness was due to animistic causes, such as evil spirits controlling behavior.

Asylum

A place of refuge or safety established to confine and care for the mentally ill; forerunners of modern mental hospitals or psychiatric facilities.

Biopsychosocial model

A model that sees the interaction of biological, psychological, and sociocultural factors as influencing individual development.

Cathartic method

A therapeutic procedure introduced by Breuer and developed by Freud, where a patient gains insight and emotional relief by recalling and reliving traumatic events.

Cultural relativism

The idea that cultural norms and values can only be understood in their own context.

Etiology

The causal description of all factors contributing to the development of a disorder or illness.

Humorism (or humoralism)

A belief that an excess or deficiency in any of the four bodily fluids directly affects health and temperament.

Hysteria

A disorder believed by ancient Greeks and Egyptians to be caused by a wandering uterus, today referred to as conversion disorder.

Maladaptive

Behaviors that cause physical or emotional harm, prevent functioning in daily life, or indicate loss of reality and self-control.

Mesmerism

An early version of hypnotism, claiming that hysterical symptoms could be treated through animal magnetism.

Psychogenesis

Development originating from psychological sources.

Somatogenesis

Development originating from physical or bodily sources.

Supernatural

Development from origins beyond the observable universe.

Syndrome

A particular group of signs and symptoms associated with a condition.

Traitement moral (moral treatment)

A therapeutic regimen attributed to Philippe Pinel focusing on improved conditions and compassion for the mentally ill.

Trephination

The drilling of a hole in the skull as a method of treating psychological disorders.