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| title | chunk | source | category | tags | date_saved | instance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abnormal psychology | 2/6 | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abnormal_psychology | reference | science, encyclopedia | 2026-05-05T15:09:52.382394+00:00 | kb-cron |
=== Deinstitutionalisation === In the late twentieth century, however, many mental hospitals were closed in many countries. In England, for example, only 14 of the 130 psychiatric institutions established in the early 20th century remained open at the start of the 21st century. In 1963, President John F. Kennedy launched the community health movement in the United States as a "bold new approach" to mental health care, aimed at coordinating mental health services for citizens in mental health centers. Over the span of 40 years, the United States saw about a 90 percent drop in the number of patients in psychiatric hospitals. Deinstitutionalisation ended the long-term confinement of patients in isolating mental hospitals, which could and did cause long-term negative adaptations. For instance, institutionalizing people with schizophrenia worsens negative symptoms. However, the practice is sometimes criticised for a perceived rise in homelessness amongst people who were previously institutionalized, or are presumed to have been in the institution era.
== Explaining abnormal behaviour == People have tried to explain and control abnormal behavior for thousands of years. Historically, there have been three main approaches to abnormal behavior: the supernatural, biological, and psychological traditions. Abnormal psychology revolves around two major paradigms for explaining mental disorders, the psychological paradigm and the biological paradigm. The psychological paradigm focuses more on the humanistic, cognitive, and behavioral causes and effects of psychopathology. The biological paradigm includes theories that focus more on physical factors, such as genetics and neurochemistry.
=== Supernatural explanations === In the first supernatural tradition, also known as the demonological method, abnormal behavior is attributed to agents outside the human body. According to this model, abnormal behaviors are caused by demons, aliens, or spirits, or the influences of the Moon, planets, and stars. During the Stone Age, trepanning was performed on those who had mental illness, to literally cut the evil spirits out of the victim's head. Conversely, Ancient Chinese, Ancient Egyptians, and Hebrews believed that these were evil demons or spirits and advocated exorcism. By the time of the Greeks and Romans, mental illnesses were thought to be caused by an imbalance of the four humors, which led to treatments such as draining fluids from the brain. During the Medieval period, many Europeans believed that the power of witches, demons, and spirits caused abnormal behaviors. People with psychological disorders were thought to be possessed by evil spirits that had to be exorcised through religious rituals. If exorcism failed, some authorities advocated steps such as confinement, beating, and other types of torture to make the body uninhabitable to witches, demons, and spirits. The belief that witches, demons, and spirits were responsible for abnormal behavior persisted into the 15th century. Swiss alchemist, astrologer, and physician Paracelsus (1493–1541), on the other hand, rejected the idea that abnormal behaviors were caused by witches, demons, and spirits and suggested that the movements of the moon and stars influenced people's mind and behaviors. This tradition is still alive today. Some people, especially in developing countries, as well as some followers of religious sects in developed countries, continue to believe that supernatural powers influence human behavior. In Western academia, the supernatural tradition has been largely replaced by the biological and psychological traditions.
=== Supernatural traditions === Throughout history, societies have proposed several explanations for abnormal human behavior. In some hunter-gatherer societies, animists have believed that people exhibiting abnormal behavior are possessed by malevolent spirits. This idea has been associated with trepanation, the practice of cutting a hole into the individual's skull to release the malevolent spirits. Although it has been difficult to define abnormal psychology, one definition includes characteristics such as statistical infrequency. A more formalized response to spiritual beliefs about abnormality is the practice of exorcism. Performed by religious authorities, exorcism is thought of as another way to release evil spirits who cause pathological behavior within the person. In some instances, individuals exhibiting unusual thoughts or behaviors have been exiled from society, or worse. Perceived witchcraft, for example, has been punished by death. Two Catholic Inquisitors wrote the Malleus Maleficarum (Latin for "The Hammer Against Witches"), which many Inquisitors and witch-hunters used. It contained an early taxonomy of perceived deviant behavior and proposed guidelines for prosecuting deviant individuals.
=== Biological explanations === In the biological tradition, psychological disorders are attributed to biological causes. In the psychological tradition, disorders are attributed to faulty psychological development, and to social context. The medical or biological perspective holds the belief that most or all abnormal behavior can be attributed to a medical factor; assuming all psychological disorders are diseases. The Greek physician Hippocrates, considered the father of Western medicine, played a major role in the biological tradition. Hippocrates and his associates wrote the Hippocratic Corpus between 450 and 350 BC, in which they suggested that abnormal behaviors can be treated like any other disease. Hippocrates viewed the brain as the seat of consciousness, emotion, intelligence, and wisdom, and believed that disorders involving these functions would logically be located there. These ideas of Hippocrates and his associates were later adopted by Galen, the Roman physician. Galen extended these ideas and developed a strong and influential school of thought within the biological tradition that extended well into the 18th century. Kendra Cherry, MSEd, states: "The medical approach to abnormal psychology focuses on the biological causes of mental illness. This perspective emphasizes understanding the underlying cause of disorders, which might include genetic inheritance, related physical disorders, infections, and chemical imbalances. Medical treatments are often pharmacological in nature, although medication is often used in conjunction with some other type of psychotherapy."