Biomaterial Database

[Explaining and understanding in psychiatry]. 1998

W Wölk

Medizinischer Dienst, Krankenversicherung Westfalen-Lippe, Münster.

The philosophical debate on explanation and understanding also led to basic methodological reflections in psychiatry. Subsuming one fact under a general law is the characteristic feature of scientific explanations. In this way, deductive conclusions can be achieved with a high degree of objectivity. Hermeneutical understanding makes way for interpretations in front of a given theoretical matrix. On the other hand, sympathetic understanding is a matter of conceiving single-part items as a consequence of other singular aspects (e.g., tracing back an action to an intention). If one understands the growth of knowledge as a rational and critical process, it seems no more justified to insist on exclusive methodologically based positions.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D010686	Philosophy, Medical	The underlying rationale or theoretical basis for the principles of MEDICINE.	Medical Philosophy
D010817	Physician-Patient Relations	The interactions between physician and patient.	Doctor-Patient Relations,Doctor Patient Relations,Physician Patient Relations,Physician Patient Relationship,Doctor Patient Relation,Doctor-Patient Relation,Physician Patient Relation,Physician Patient Relationships,Physician-Patient Relation,Relation, Doctor Patient,Relation, Doctor-Patient,Relation, Physician Patient,Relation, Physician-Patient,Relations, Doctor Patient,Relations, Doctor-Patient,Relations, Physician Patient,Relations, Physician-Patient,Relationship, Physician Patient,Relationships, Physician Patient
D011340	Problem Solving	A learning situation involving more than one alternative from which a selection is made in order to attain a specific goal.
D011570	Psychiatry	The medical science that deals with the origin, diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of mental disorders.
D011613	Psychotherapy	A generic term for the treatment of mental illness or emotional disturbances primarily by verbal or nonverbal communication.	Psychotherapies
D004645	Empathy	An individual's objective and insightful awareness of the feelings and behavior of another person. It should be distinguished from sympathy, which is usually nonobjective and noncritical. It includes caring, which is the demonstration of an awareness of and a concern for the good of others. (From Bioethics Thesaurus, 1992)	Caring,Compassion
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D012649	Self Concept	Persons' view of themselves.	Self Esteem,Self Perception,Self Confidence,Self-Perception,Concept, Self,Confidence, Self,Esteem, Self,Perception, Self,Perceptions, Self,Self Esteems,Self Perceptions,Self-Perceptions