biopsykososial

The biopsychosocial model is an approach to understanding health, illness, and health care that integrates biological, psychological, and social factors. It was proposed by George L. Engel in 1977 as a critique of the purely biomedical model, arguing that disease processes are influenced not only by biology but also by mental states and social context.

Biological factors include genetics, physiology, and pathophysiology. Psychological factors encompass emotions, cognition, behavior, coping styles, and mental health. Social factors cover relationships, work, housing, education, culture, socioeconomic status, and access to health care. The model thus views health as the result of interactions among these domains, rather than as the product of a single cause.

In practice, the biopsychosocial model informs patient assessment, treatment planning, and care delivery. It supports patient-centered care and multidisciplinary teams, integrating medical treatment with psychological therapies, social support, and public health interventions. It is widely used across medicine, psychiatry, psychology, and public health, particularly in managing chronic illness, pain, depression, and conditions influenced by lifestyle and social determinants.

Strengths of the approach include a holistic understanding of health, improved patient engagement and adherence, and the ability to address multiple contributors to illness. Limitations involve challenges in operationalizing and measuring the three domains, potential resource and time demands, and the risk of overgeneralization or dilution of biological treatment. Critics also note variability in evidence quality and the need for careful integration with established scientific methods.