Psychological Factors in Healing: A New Perspective on an Old Debate

Authors
Samuel S. Myers, Herbert Benson
Publication
Behavioral Medicine
Volume 18, 1992 - Issue 1
Abstract

Over the last 20 years, medical researchers from a variety of disciplines, including behavioral medicine, neuro-immunology, neuroendocrinology, social medicine, and psychiatry, have converged in an effort to produce greater understanding and acceptance of the effects of psychological factors on physical health. Many in the medical profession have remained somewhat skeptical, claiming that psychological components of healing are largely “folklore”, unsubstantiated by hard evidence. The proponents of psychological factors have, in turn, criticized this skepticism as being unwarranted and dogmatic. Our goal is to go beyond this debate in an attempt to clarify the idealogical and historical roots of this impasse. Such clarification is essential because underlying the debate is a broader and more fundamental question about what is an acceptable medical model and, more specifically, by what criteria we may judge “hard” evidence. Without bringing these larger issues into focus, little progress will be made in reaching consensus on the relevance of psychological factors to mainstream medical practice.

Debates about the validity of research in the mind-body field often fail to produce any consensus. The way we define “validity” depends on, and changes with, our models of health and medicine. Our current model is constructed so that such nonmaterial, nonreducible, nonuniversal elements as psychological and social factors are, by definition, “soft” and, therefore, invalid. Proponents and opponents of incorporating psychological factors more fully into medicine reach an impasse, not primarily because they disagree on their analysis of research in the field, but because they are operating from different models.

Related Listings
The Usefulness of he Relaxation Response in the...
Authors
Herbert Benson, M.D., Helen P Klemchuck, A.B., John R Grapham, M.D.
Journal
Headache, the Journal of Head and Face Pain
·
PHYSIOLOGIC CHANGES consistent with the decreased sympathetic nervous system activity are present during the practice of a relaxation technique, Transcendental Meditation. The changes consist of decreased oxygen consumption, carbon dioxide elimination, respiratory rate and minute ventilation. Arterial blood lactate decreases markedly. Arterial blood pH and base excess decrease slightly. There are no changes in arterial blood pressure, in respiratory quotient, nor in rectal temperature […]
The use of meditation--relaxation techniques fo...
Authors
P Carrington, G H Collings, Jr, H Benson, H Robinson, L W Wood, P M Lehrer, R L Woolfolk, J W Cole
Journal
J Occup Med
·
The efficacy of meditation-relaxation techniques has been widely researched in the laboratory, but their effectiveness for management of stress in organizational settings is still relatively unexplored. The present study compared relaxation and control conditions as part of a program of stress-reduction in industry. A total of 154 New York Telephone employees self-selected for stress learned one of three techniques--clinically standardized meditation (CSM), respiratory one method medi […]
Physiological Correlates of Meditation and Thei...
Authors
Herbert Benson, Bonnie P Malvea, John R Graham
Journal
Headache - The Journal and Head and Face Pain
·
Supported, in part, by grants from the United States Public Health Service (HL 14486-01, HL 10539-06, and RR-76 front the General Clinical Research Centers Program of the Division of Research Resources), the General Service Foundation, the Headache Research Foundation, and the Sandoz Foundation, Inc.