Trends in Depression

Term Paper # 105293

Psychology > Disorders

An overview of mental illness - in particular, depression.

1,503 words () | 4 sources | APA | 2008 United States

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses the advances that have been made over the years in the understanding of human behavior, relating in particular to mental health and the treatment of illnesses of the mind. The author refers to various articles that have been written about depression and its treatment.

From the Paper:

"Modern society has benefited greatly from the advances made in the understanding of human behavior. From the archaic ideas held by the ancients to the rise of empiric scientific query, the study of what makes the human race unique and different from other animal species continues to advance. Among these is the approach to mental health and the treatment of illnesses of the mind. Indeed, the earliest forms of mental illness intervention involved releasing the entrapped demon by trephination, where the skull is punctured to allow the demon to escape. More than two centuries ago, mental health disorders were attributed to such phenomena as demon possession, spirits and imbalances of humors with little understanding regarding their origins. At the dawn of the 20th century, theories of the mind such as classic psychodynamic theory started to take precedence in clinical practice. This was a large step forward in the understanding of the psyche because of the use of clinical observations in formulating and verifying theories of mental illness. As technology began to advance in strides, the study of the human mind began to shift towards exploration of the neurobiological basis of human behavior and integrating this understanding with clinical correlations with the self and the sociocultural environment, which presently forms the cornerstone of psychology, psychiatry and psychopharmacology (Ciccarelli & Meyer, 2006)."

Sample of Sources Used:

Ciccarelli, S.K. & Meyer, G.E. (2006). Psychology. 1st Ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson-Prentice Hall.
Cloud, J. (2007 Aug 16). When sadness is a good thing. Time, 170(9). Retrieved September 19, 2007 from http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1653643,00.html
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). (2007). The numbers count: mental disorders in America. Retrieved September 19, 2007 from http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/the-numbers-count-mental-disorders-in-america.shtml#MajorDepressive
Stern, T. (2003). Border Narratives: Three First-Person Accounts of Depression. Studies in the Literary Imagination, 36(2), 91+. Retrieved September 20, 2007, from Questia database: http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=5007637021