The concept of mental illness has evolved over time, from ancient definitions who based their classifications on the idea of mental degeneration, until the current classifications of the DSM-V and the ICD-10, which aim to be non-theoretical conceptualizations, closer to the biological sciences. Throughout history, psychiatry has understood mental illnesses according to their neurobiological (psychiatric biology), psychological (principally psychoanalysis and behaviorism), and social (social psychology and systemic) origins, addressing the various aspects of the phenomenology of mental processes according to the emphasis of each discipline. Today, however, we consider mental illnesses as complex phenomena, consisting of circular interactions between different levels of reality, such that an individual’s neurobiological alterations color his or her subjective assessment of the world–and visa versa–significantly impacting social performance (employment, family, educational, political). At the same time, culture and community largely determine an individual’s health process and mental suffering.
The biopsychosocial and community approach seeks to address the array of mental health problems, taking into account their complexity and the three dimensions: neurobiological, psychological, and social, and emphasizing rehabilitation and social reintegration.
Our research topic looks to bring together various perspectives–biological and cognitive, psychological and social–on the diagnosis and treatment of severe and common mental disorders, with a multi-disciplinary approach. We aim to publish innovative investigations–from evidence-based medical narratives, literature reviews, case studies, and brief reports, to research and theoretical articles on topics including social cognition, psychodiagnosis and dynamic therapy, psychotherapeutic groups, family and systemic therapy, labor and cognitive rehabilitation, social skills training, and art and alternative therapies. Special emphasis will be put on recognized evidence-based models, such as assertive community treatment (ACT), community re-entry programs, and early diagnosis of severe and common mental disorders, as well as on investigations on mental health determinants and the prevention of mental illness.
We hope to have contributors and readers from a wide array of academic disciplines–not only clinical psychiatry, public health, psychology, occupational therapy, and neuroscience, but also from the social sciences, anthropology, and art fields.
The concept of mental illness has evolved over time, from ancient definitions who based their classifications on the idea of mental degeneration, until the current classifications of the DSM-V and the ICD-10, which aim to be non-theoretical conceptualizations, closer to the biological sciences. Throughout history, psychiatry has understood mental illnesses according to their neurobiological (psychiatric biology), psychological (principally psychoanalysis and behaviorism), and social (social psychology and systemic) origins, addressing the various aspects of the phenomenology of mental processes according to the emphasis of each discipline. Today, however, we consider mental illnesses as complex phenomena, consisting of circular interactions between different levels of reality, such that an individual’s neurobiological alterations color his or her subjective assessment of the world–and visa versa–significantly impacting social performance (employment, family, educational, political). At the same time, culture and community largely determine an individual’s health process and mental suffering.
The biopsychosocial and community approach seeks to address the array of mental health problems, taking into account their complexity and the three dimensions: neurobiological, psychological, and social, and emphasizing rehabilitation and social reintegration.
Our research topic looks to bring together various perspectives–biological and cognitive, psychological and social–on the diagnosis and treatment of severe and common mental disorders, with a multi-disciplinary approach. We aim to publish innovative investigations–from evidence-based medical narratives, literature reviews, case studies, and brief reports, to research and theoretical articles on topics including social cognition, psychodiagnosis and dynamic therapy, psychotherapeutic groups, family and systemic therapy, labor and cognitive rehabilitation, social skills training, and art and alternative therapies. Special emphasis will be put on recognized evidence-based models, such as assertive community treatment (ACT), community re-entry programs, and early diagnosis of severe and common mental disorders, as well as on investigations on mental health determinants and the prevention of mental illness.
We hope to have contributors and readers from a wide array of academic disciplines–not only clinical psychiatry, public health, psychology, occupational therapy, and neuroscience, but also from the social sciences, anthropology, and art fields.
