Psychophysiological Disorders

Abstract

The term “psychophysiological” has had an interesting and complex history, reflecting changes in the ways in which medical professionals have conceptualized and treated medical illness (e.g., Gatchel, 1993). In the ancient world, a holistic and integrated mind-body view of health was the dominant model. This view was largely based on shared mythology and an unscientific understanding of the human body. However, with the advent of physical medicine in the seventeenth century, an increased emphasis was placed on careful observation and experimentation in explaining physical phenomena. The dominant belief became that the body could be explained through its own mechanisms, and that there was no need for an association between “soul” or “mind” and physical functioning. Although this view allowed for simplistic and unidirectional relationships among psychological and physical states, there was little room for reciprocal interactions among biological, psychological, and social variables. This model (known as biomedical reductionism or mind-brain dualism) remained dominant in the Western world until well into the nineteenth century.