A Proposal Called The Biopsychosocial Model ( Straub, 2014 )

Proposed in the late 1970s, George Engel made a proposal called the biopsychosocial model (Straub, 2014). This model believes that all aspects of health are reliant upon three factors: biological factors, psychological factors, and sociocultural factors; and cannot be the symptom of one factor solely. It is thought that that all three groups of factors play an equally important role in both maintaining and deteriorating health (Varnekar, 2014). Occasionally, if health deteriorates; whether it is physiologically, mentally, or otherwise; a cultural influences take hold, an individual may turn to suicide as a means of coping. Health can be looked at in many ways, but is most efficient to examine it using the biopsychosocial model; starting with biological. Biological, or physical, factors that contribute to health can be anything that is related to a person physiologically (Straub, 2014). One of the simplest biological factors that influence health is genetics; humans are genetically complex and the smallest change in genetics can cause a plethora of health challenges. Gene disorders can be hereditary since birth or occur later in life; but are either inherited by one or both parents. One type of genetic disorder is a single-gene disorder; which is when a mutation affects just one gene. Sickle cell anemia would be an example of single-gene disorder. On the other hand, chromosomal disorders are disorders, such as Down syndrome, that occur when chromosomes are altered or