Psicopatología y cerebro: De los demonios a los neurotransmisores

FREIDIN, E.; FERNÁNDEZ, G.A.; PITONI, D.C.

Suma Psicológica

Fundación Universitaria Konrad Lorenz

Lugar: Bogotá, Colombia; Año: 2004 vol. 11 p. 231 - 246

Mental disorders have always been a matter of social importance, and the way they have been conceptualized has varied in diverse historical times and contexts. However, since the second half of the 19th century, the idea that mental processes, either normal or abnormal ones, are brain processes, began to grow with scientific facts in its favor. From a therapeutic point of view, in the 1970s, psychiatry experienced a big progress with the development of psychopharmacology, and during the 20th century, psychologists developed some therapeutic technics derived from conditioning principles, which have resulted of great efficiency in changing mental illness pateints´ behavior, thoughts, and emotions. In this article, we explore some studies that have contributed to the understanding of the neurobiology of mental disorders, and besides, we mention some researches which showed that while psychopharmacology and psychology achieve improvements in patiens´sympthoms, they also modify the functioning of their brains.