Job Talk: Matthew Lebowitz | Clinical Area

Title: (Unintended) Consequences of Biomedical Explanations for Mental Disorders
Abstract: Mental disorders are increasingly thought of as biomedical illnesses caused by genetic abnormalities and neurochemical imbalances, and this trend favoring biomedical conceptualizations has conventionally been assumed to have many benefits.  This talk, however, will present evidence that explaining mental disorders in biomedical terms can lead people to feel hopeless about the prospect of recovery, reduce therapists’ compassion and warmth toward patients, and even affect people’s recall of their own psychiatric symptoms.  The talk will also discuss possible strategies for intervening to combat the negative effects of biomedical perspectives and consider the broader implications of the findings.