This term refers to multiple levels of analysis. The focus of analysis should fi

Question

This term refers to multiple levels of analysis. The focus of analysis should first be on the biology of the person and then the psychology of the person and finally the sociology of the person. Are there any brain or nervous system issues that could have affected behavior? Also, ask if the body and mind had any influence on our psychological well being. And lastly, could the biopsychosocial conditions have an effect on our sociological aspects of our interactions with society?

Explain what to examine in the case of a person suffering from anxiety issues (or select a disorder). Imagine a person who is suffering from anxiety issues and analyze this case from the three viewpoints. Remember that the three points of view can have an effect that is reciprocal. That is each point of view can affect other points of views. Try and do this in one page.

Explanation / Answer

The biopsychosocial model aims to explain an individual’s health as a culmination of his unique biological factors (comprising of genetics, temperament and biochemicals), psychological factors (such as mood, affect, personality, etc.) and social factors (cultural background, society within which one operates, familial factors, social interactions, etc.). Distorted biological factors such as composition of neurochemicals in the brain or abnormality in any other bio physiological processes can lead to ill health and diseases occurring in the body. Psychological factors such as clinical symptoms, psychopathology or even perpetual distress and negative thinking could lead to release in cortisol in the body. This is also known as the stress hormone and tends to produce negative impacts in the human body including increasing the chances of a heart attack. Similarly sociocultural factors like maternal deprivation in early years, lack of nutrition as a consequence to that, lack of resources, poor sociocultural exposure and stimulation, lack of enrichment in the environment can lead to poor health and well being. This also related to the fact and mood, affect and physiological health are closely related to one another. Researchers have found in longitudinal studies that people who were closer to the people with whom they felt belonged remained happier, showing higher happiness indexes than the ones who kept aiming merely at gaining material wealth. This theory could also be well linked to the diathesis stress model according to which all the factors could serve as predispositions to developing a full blown disorder. This means that biological predisposition in terms of genetic history of a disorder, psychological predisposition in terms of poor unconscious conflicts, poor coping skills, poor resilience, maladaptive cognitive factors or social factors such as loss of a significant person in life, trauma, maladaptive upbringing and poor environment could make an individual prone to a disorder.

Yes, brain and nervous system issues could affect behaviour since various subparts in the brain are responsible for various functions in the brain. Amygdala for instance is responsible for the emotional regulation, cerebellum for the balance, etc. Also, MRI scans of people with particular disorders have shown commonalities in terms of the damaged areas in their brains. This clearly indicates towards the fact that neuroanatomy plays a role in determining the normalcy in terms of behaviour in people. Therefore, a person with a damaged Broca’s or Wernicke’s area in their brain may have difficulty in comprehending and producing language since they are the brain structures responsible for the same. In this manner, all the structures within the brain have designated functions to play, failing which the behaviour of the person with regard to that function is distorted or turns maladaptive.

Similarly speaking, the body and mind along with their well being have an impact on our psychological well being. This is true because bodily functions, their processes and it’s good shape may lead to a healthy mind, thereby leading the person to engage in positive thoughts. The same may be true in its reverse. A healthy mind with appropriate coping skills and lesser conflicts may lead to a clearer thought process, giving rise to better health. These are scientifically laden facts after years of research and elaborate study.

In fact, all these three functions combined biopsychosocial could determine our social interactions within the environment. For instance, genetic predispositions towards disorders like schizophrenia may lead a person to develop it in their life, which would in turn affect their interaction in the society (social isolation, disconnect with reality and bizarre behaviour, reduced meaningful interactions). Psychological factors like personality (such as introversion versus extroversion) may impact how a person behaves in the presence of other people around them. An introvert is likely to have lesser but meaningful interactions, whereas an extrovert who draws his energy from outside may do so by interacting regularly with distant friends too, just for the sake of it! These different ways of being therefore determine sociological factors in more than many ways. Lastly, social factors like the culture and background within which one resides impact the values and belief systems, thereby impacting the behaviour of an individual.

In case of a person suffering from anxiety issues, all the three f actors- biological, psychological and sociocultural would need to be discerned in order to have a comprehensive assessment. This means that biological predisposition such as genetic component of anxiety (family history) may impact the likeliness of this person to develop the disorder. Similarly, psychological factors such as personality, coping mechanisms, resilience, cognitive patterns, general mood and affect would also heavily impact how different situations are perceived. For instance, a person who is an introvert may find it difficult to interact with a larger group of people at a time whereas an extrovert may be more than happy to do so. Sociocultural factors like lack of resources, maternal deprivation in early years (lack of attachment) may lead a person to develop symptoms of paranoia or anxiety as a culmination of distorted thinking patterns and belief systems.

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