La depresión como enfermedad: en defensa del modelo biomédico en psiquiatría / In defense of the biomedical model in psychiatry. the case of depression

ABSTRACT

Defining what is meant by "mental illness" has three dimensions (i) the ontological dimension, which attempts to answer the question of what is a mental illness in itself, (ii) the scientific dimension, which attempts to identify its causes, and (iii) the practical dimension, which will seek a treatment. This article uses depression to examine how various conceptual alternatives in contemporary literature attempted to tackle the problem of what is a mental illness. After evaluating the scope of their proposals in the three dimensions mentioned above, it is concluded that the biomedical model could become a good candidate for developing a useful framework for understanding, having a scientific explanation and treating depression.