evaluation: deviation from ideal mental health definition abnormality

evaluation of the deviation from ideal mental health definition for abnormality

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who can achieve all these criteria?

  • according to the criteria most of us are abnormal to some degree
  • we need to know how many of these behaviours need to be absent for a person to be classed as abnormal
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is mental health the same as physical health?

  • ideal physical health is detected by problems in physical illness such as a fever and physical illnesses have physical causes such as virus
  • most mental illnesses aren't caused by physcial factors
  • therefore, we can't assume mental health is the same as physical health and so we can't diagnose someone as mentally ill in the same way as someone who's physically ill
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cultural relativism

  • many ideas of ideal mental health are culture bound. if this criteria is applied to non western groups, we may find a higher incidence of abnormality
  • for example, the criteria of self actualism/ personal growth, is relevent to individualist cultures but not to collectivist cultures who work together for the greater good of their community
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