Comparing Biomedical and Biopsychosocial Models of Health

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 A-Level Psychology

Comparing Biomedical and Biopsychosocial Models of Health

The biomedical model presumes that illness is always due to abnormalities in the body’s workings.  It is the basis of modern Western medical practice.  It works on the theory that if a part of the body goes wrong it should be fixed or replaced, in the same way that a machine would be repaired.  It is a reductionist view of illness.  This means that it takes the simplest possible cause of the illness and applies the simplest cure.

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        The biomedical model uses single factor causes and doesn’t consider all the factors that lead to illness.  For example the biomedical model would say smoking is the cause of heart disease, but not all smokers get heart disease so other factors must be involved.  

        This model also suggests that the body is just a shell for the mind or soul.  This is called Cartesian dualism.  However the biomedical model doesn’t distinguish between illness and heath and suggests that if you are not ill you are healthy.  This doesn’t encourage or promote healthy lifestyles in people.  

        The biopsychosocial model ...

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This is a short essay that introduces the general ideas of two models. It is not very detailed but the definitions are accurate as they stand. The writer has used good examples to demonstrate understanding. ****