Psychiatric Illness: A Genetic Analysis

In an attempt to gain a position as a psychologist, I will be discussing schizophrenia and the disorder’s casual factors, associated symptoms, the areas of the brain it affects, and the neural basis of the disorder. I will continue on to discuss appropriate drug therapies. In addition I will also be reviewing two separate case studies, each on a different disorder. I will be examining each problem from the perspective of a bio psychologist. I will define the patient’s diagnosis at length I will relate each case to the nature-nurture theory, and talk about any helpful drug interventions or solutions for each disorder. When talking about drug intervention, it is also important to discuss the positive and

During the 1800s, treating individuals with psychological issues was a problematic and disturbing issue. Society didn’t understand mental illness very well, so the mentally ill individuals were sent to asylums primarily to get them off the streets. Patients in asylums were usually subjected to conditions that today we would consider horrific and inhumane due to the lack of knowledge on mental illnesses.

The medical model dismissed psychological explanations of mental illness, suggesting that such explanations were no better than demonology. In the mid-19th century, the prevailing belief was that all illness was caused by disordered physiology or brain chemistry. The search for psychological causes for mental illness, such as conflict, frustration, and emotional disturbance, was held back by the dominance of the medical model. This belief persists—explanations for alcoholism range from inheritance and other biological factors to life circumstances and a need to escape, exemplifying the contrast between the medical and psychological models (p. 502-03).

Our world has come to a point in history where we rely heavily on pills and therapy and diagnosis and doctors and studies, just to tell us what’s wrong with our personalities and our brains – for what? So pills can be prescribed and therapy revived for the diagnosis doctors proclaimed, backed up by studies they never named, all so they can keep their jobs? There appears to be no rhyme or reason to the excessive diagnosis apart from the goal of expanding one’s practice. Clinical studies are often discovered to be biased, or data manipulated. Whether the focus is on teenage trauma or debilitating depression, professionals tend to overlook important factors of influence. An array of sources have taken to this subject including a psychiatrist based in Berkley, a featured neuroscientist on TedTalk, a cartoonist named Mike Baldwin, and an analysis by s.e. smith.

The general public increasingly attributes mental disorders to biological causes such as a chemical imbalance or inherited genes (Schnittker, 2008; Schomerus et al., 2012).

Nowadays there is a hot debate on what exactly causes mental illnesses. The two main suspects are society and genetics. Proponents of the genetics theory believe that there is a physical ailment of the brain which causes mental health issues. Those who support the society ideology believe that mental health is shaped by the society in which the person lives.

Through the course of time, mental illnesses have always been in existence due to varying factors and causes. However, as time has passed, the perceptions and available treatments for mental illnesses have also changed as new technology was developed. By looking at the treatments and perceptions of mental illnesses in the early 20th century, we can learn how to properly treat and diagnose not only mental disorders but also other conditions as well as show us the importance of review boards and controlled clinical trials.

Some studies revealed that suggested associations between increased acceptance of biogenetic causes and social acceptance were not significant either (Angermeyer, M., Holzinger, A., Carta, M., & Schomerus, G. (2011) and found that social acceptance of mental illness varies with diagnosis, with sufferers of schizophrenia being perceived as the most dangerous according to the data reviewed. One theory may be that although there is a decrease in blame associated with mental health conditions, that the increase in perceived danger negates any possible positive effect this may have. Therefor whether those with mental illness are seen as being to blame for their condition or not the stigma associated remains negative.

The major models of mental health includes the disease model, the psychodynamic model, the cognitive model, the social model and the behavioural model. The disease model suggests that mental ill health arises from biochemical and genetic causes. It relies on the evidence of genetic and pharmaceutical studies to support this position. Evidence from twin studies suggest that there is a link between genetics and schizophrenia.

As children, we are ignorant about the world. The things that are put in front of us are usually the most important. As young adults, what is on the outside is more favorable than what is on the inside. However, we are not ignorant children or self-centered young adults, we have to focus on every detail and have some in depth knowledge as to why things are the way they are. In regards to psychological disorder, singling out one factor gives insufficient information in regards to mental health related outcomes. George E. Engle came up with a model that equally represents all the factors that he believes determines psychological disorders, he called it the Biopsychosocial model.

There have been many varying perspectives and views over time regarding explanations for mental illness. These diverse explanations are responsible for the social perception associated with mental illness and they shape the way mental illness is regarded by the public. Currently, biomedical explanations hold the dominant view regarding mental illness. This view considers the onset of mental illness as being a result of predominantly biological factors, whereas psychosocial explanations consider mental illness to be a product of the environment and life experiences of an individual. These explanations directly impact sufferers of mental illness.

The accomplishment of two goals of the Human Genome Project (HGP), the mapping and sequencing of entire human genome, provides new opportunities for identification of genetic factors associated with common health disorders (Collins, et al., 1998; NHGRI, 2000). The need to fully integrate psychiatric genetics into research exploring the genetic aspects of common diseases was recently identified by a work group convened by the National Institute of Mental Health (Barondes, 1999). As gene mutations for common health problems including mental disorders are identified, screening for mutations that contribute to the prediction of disease risk is likely to become part of health care in a variety

This essay will discuss whether schizophrenia is genetically inherited disorder. There will be an understanding to what schizophrenia is with a brief description in the introduction. This essay will also talk about weather schizophrenia is genetically inherited or weather it is a biological (Inherited) disorder. It will also include weather schizophrenia is cause by other factors such as social factors, environmental, pre natal, childhood and neurobiology. The essay will also state weather schizophrenia is caused by a combination of the two.

The article that I chose to critique had a clear statement of the purpose of the study. The purpose was briefly stated in the first paragraph of the introduction and restated again more specifically in the last paragraph. Many researches have been conducted to understand the etiology of schizophrenia, such as genetic factors or environmental factors thus, I believe the problem is researchable. A brief background of the definition the term schizophrenia is defined in the introduction and much information about the topic is explained throughout the introduction. I believe the article indicates all the variables that were investigated and they explained why each variable was

Conclusions / Results: Conclusions suggest that the nature vs nurture dichotomy may not be as relevant as looking at the interaction between these two forces. It was discovered that while one’s genetic heritage creates a predisposition towards schizophrenia, other factors such as the home environment, the parental environment, dietary factors and others may determine whether the disease is manifested.