Abstract

TORALES, J; BARRIOS, I  and  MORENO, M. Explanatory models in psychiatry. Rev. ciente. UCSA [online]. 2017, vol.4, n.3, pp.59-70. ISSN 2409-8752.  https://doi.org/10.18004/ucsa/2409-8752/2017.004(03)059-070.

A variety of solid evidence suggests that psychiatric disorders involve causal processes at the micro and macro levels, both inside and outside the individual, and include components that are understood from biological, psychological and sociocultural criteria. No explanatory model that defends a single premise (whether biological, psychological or sociocultural) is sufficient to fully account for and define psychiatry. Therefore, it is emphasized that psychiatry must conform to an integrative model, based on a biopsychosocial holistic approach. This will allow the development of a more practical and coherent conceptual framework for psychiatric practice, through the integration of various elements. In this review article, we will discuss the classical explanatory models in psychiatry and the integrative biopsychosocial hierarchical model, in an effort to reinforce the notion that psychiatry, instead of adopting a single explanatory perspective, as is often done in traditional theories, is a science based on pluralist and multilevel models of etiology and pathogenesis.

Keywords : psychiatry; explanatory models; biopsychosocial model.

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