The Biopsychosocial Model in Child & Adolescent Counselling
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From birth to their teenage years, children and adolescents progress through many life changes and challenges in their family, peer groups, schools, and other environments and these changes can pose a concern for those around.
Treating a young person requires appropriate training, a special level of patience and the ability to connect with both the young person and their guardian. Rather than taking a one-size-fits-all-approach to therapy, we can conduct a holistic assessment with the young person.
The biopsychosocial framework is an approach that emphasizes the importance of a systemic view of the individual and an integration of biological, psychological, and sociocultural factors on human development and functioning.
The biopsychosocial model reflects our understanding that human beings are experiencing all three at the same time:
Biological factor - We’re looking into one’s temperament, personality, and default settings. For example, if a child is high on neuroticism, we know that they have specific sensitivities to negative feelings and emotions; or if a child is high in conscientiousness, we know that they’re likely to be driven.
Psychological factor - We’re looking into one’s perspective such as their beliefs, values and ethics.
Social factor - We’re looking into how a child has been raised, their cultural interaction and other social factors that can be contributing to a problem.
The biopsychosocial model in counselling is utilized because problems usually don't exist in a vacuum—they all influence each other in different ways. Particularly in children, it's often not enough to explore simply one aspect. By using the biopsychosocial framework, no important stone will be left unturned and results can therefore be more thorough.