Chapter 16- Mental Health: Therapy and Treatment

Science-practitioner model

Application of scientific knowledge and reasoning to mental health problems.

Transcultural approach

Therapy that emphasizes greater awareness and sensitivity toward the role of culture in mental health.

Theory of humors

Ancient Greek idea that four fluids maintain a healthy body and mind: blood, yellow bile, phlegm, and black bile.

Trephination

The ancient practice of drilling a hole in the skull to release demons or unfriendly gods to restore mental health.

Biomedical theories of mental illness

Focus mainly on biological or physiological explanations of mental illness, usually in the brain.

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)

Careful delivery of electrical stimulation to the brain to induce seizures that alter neural pathways.

Placebo effect

When the mere expectation or a belief in a drug or other type of intervention produces the same effect as an authentic treatment.

Insight Therapy

Counseling approaches that rely on talking about and understanding the self to improve mental health.

Eclectic approach

Therapy that integrates whatever theories, techniques, and approaches apply to meet the needs of a particular client.

Psychoanalysis

Treatment based on insight regarding the conscious and unconscious human mind.

Dual instinct theory

Freud’s idea that humans have two contradictory impulses or drives: a death instinct and a life instinct.

Psychodynamic therapies

Insight approaches that help clients connect past and present emotions to motivations, thoughts, and behaviors.

Existential therapy

Developed by Viktor Frankl; the idea that the search for personal meaning in life is a therapeutic motivation.

Humanistic approach to therapy

Therapy techniques focused on building up individual free will, self-esteem, and personal potential.

Gestalt therapy

A humanistic approach developed by Fritz Perls that seeks to make the client whole by focusing on present experience and the relationship between client and therapist.

Person-centered therapy

A nonjudgmental, humanistic approach developed by Carl Rogers that relies on the therapist to convey unconditional positive regard for the client.

Behavioral therapies

Techniques using learning principles to modify current behaviors so they are more adaptive (less problematic).

Exposure therapies

Use of classical conditioning to treat disorders such as anxiety, specific phobias, and posttraumatic stress disorder.

Applied behavior analysis (ABA)

Use of operant conditioning to systematically reduce maladaptive behaviors and increase adaptive behaviors.

Therapeutic modeling

A social learning therapy that helps people develop adaptive behaviors through observation and practice.

Cognitive therapy

Changing irrational and unhealthy thought patterns that cause someone problems.

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)

Helps clients replace dysfunctional, irrational thoughts with healthier patterns that lead to adaptive behaviors.

Art therapy

Encourages reflection and insight by expressing difficult feelings or memories through artistic creation (e.g., painting, drawing).

Play therapy

Enables children to express difficult-to-articulate feelings in their natural language of play.

Group therapy

A pragmatic, economical approach that uses group interactions to teach members more adaptive responses.

Family therapy

When a therapist meets with family members together, to observe and improve interactions and dynamics.