The Evolution of Clinical Psychology

The Evolution of Clinical Psychology
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The Evolution of Clinical Psychology
History has references to mental illness. Its evolution, however, has not been linear but rather cyclical. A behavior is considered normal or abnormal depending on the context and the prevailing knowledge at the time. Earlier, mental illness was attributed to possession by evil or demonic spirits. As a result, individuals with the problem were referred to those who could exorcist the evil spirits. Often, mentally ill patients were excluded from the rest of society. However, advancements in knowledge have created a better understanding of mental illnesses and brought about the field of clinical psychology.
Sigmund Freud, an Australian psychoanalyst, significantly influenced the development of clinical psychology in the earlier days. Freud indicated that mental illness could be addressed by talking to the patient (Hopkins, 2018). Psychology at the time was an academic discipline, focusing majorly on research and not application. Clinical psychology emerged as a profession in the 1980s. At the time, more studies were done on the patients in mental asylums. In 1896, American psychologist Lightner Witmer opened the first psychological clinic where he focused on treating children with learning disabilities. Henceforth, more clinics devoted to the practice of clinical psychology opened.
The various transitions in the clinical psychology field were met with resistance. Earlier, professionals were skeptical about clinical psychology's critical role in treating individuals with mental illness. For instance, in America, clinical psychology was not recognized as a medical specialty in 1844. In the 1960s and 1970s, psychiatry experienced scepticism about its legitimacy as a medical discipline. However, the development of DSM III ...