The rebirth of contextual thinking in psychotraumatology

Abstract

In this time of information proliferation (revolution), globalization, multiculturalism and interconnectedness, it seems important to re-evaluate the impact of politics, economics, and other societal issues on the human psyche. Focussing predominantly on the intrapsychic or the neurobiological dimensions of human experiences in psychiatry enables a more manageable conceptualization of mental illness and health, although at cost of fully understanding of their complexity. The interaction between the outside world and the individual should be analysed in order to understand human psychology more accurately. Western psychiatry, being a product of societies with long-lasting democracies, and rooted in its tradition and culture of individualism, seems to have overlooked the fact that in other corners of the world daily life of individuals is more heavily influenced and impacted by history and politics. Being brought up in a family tackled by Cultural Revolution in China or the cleansing actions of the Stalin regime in the former Soviet Union or becoming entangled in political activism and terror in many other countries with totalitarian regimes in the world, determines ways individuals perceive life, think of it and define their roles and expectations. Besides this, in collectivist societies, the existence of an individual is much more depending and relying on larger systems than in individualistic ones, and individual actions can seldom be properly understood when not related to a broader context. While in developmental psychiatry, social psychiatry, and systemic therapy, the importance of contextual thinking has being acknowledged, and has formed a firm fundament for theory and practice, other schools and streams within psychiatry have developed in a different way throughout the past. A huge amount of knowledge about different aspects of mental health problems (neurobiological, intrapsychic, clinical, etc.) has being produced, and many different, well-paved roads towards better understanding of human psychology have being constructed. However, "the big picture" somehow seems to fade. Therefore, it is necessary to unite these different roads in a larger avenue that will lead us to a more complete perception of the complexity of human psyche, and to more efficient treatments of those whose spirits are seriously wounded or broken. © 2007 Springer Science + Business Media, LLC. All rights reserved.