Engineering Minds? Ethical Considerations on Biotechnological Approaches to Mental Health, Well-Being, and Human Flourishing

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Federico Germani ◽  
Philipp Kellmeyer ◽  
Sebastian Wäscher ◽  
Nikola Biller-Andorno
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Human Flourishing ◽  
Ethical Considerations

scholarly journals Defining well-being in community development from the ground up: a case study of participant and practitioner perspectives

2018 ◽  
Vol 55 (2) ◽  
pp. 237-257 ◽  
Author(s):  
Annette Coburn ◽  
Sinéad Gormally
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Community Development ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Community Safety ◽  
Health Improvement ◽  
Advisory Group ◽  
Human Flourishing ◽  
Briefing Paper ◽  
Safety Consideration ◽  
Development Practice

Abstract The concept of well-being is part of an inter-disciplinary agenda for health improvement and human flourishing, critiqued as a superficial ‘solution’ to structural inequality (Friedli, L. (2003) Mental Health Improvement ‘concepts and definitions’: briefing Paper for the National Advisory Group, Scottish Executive, Edinburgh; White, S. C. (2010) Analysing wellbeing: a framework for development practice, Development in Practice, 20 (2), 158–172). This article discusses an evaluation of three health promoting community projects, over a two-year period. The study identifies important features for understanding well-being at grassroots, community and practice levels. Local people had viable and holistic perceptions of well-being that helped them reflect on their current contexts. Practitioners tended to have a more limited conceptualization by associating wellbeing with mental health or community safety. Consideration of findings identified five conditions of wellbeing for community development practice: creating a sense of community; strong volunteering ethos; networking and partnership working; positive language; enhanced relationships. Applying these findings in practice helped to create a new reflective grid, incorporating seven elements of well-being. Participants found this grid easy to use and affirming in facilitating reflection on their personal well-being. This was also beneficial for community practitioners, who were not clinically qualified, to facilitate reflective learning at grassroots level. Analysis of this research enables a conclusion to be drawn to suggest that well-being is a valuable construct in unifying community development.

scholarly journals The Predictive Dynamics of Happiness and Well-Being

2021 ◽  
pp. 175407392110638
Author(s):  
Mark Miller ◽  
Erik Rietveld ◽  
Julian Kiverstein
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Predictive Processing ◽  
Prediction Errors ◽  
Affective States ◽  
Human Flourishing ◽  
Making Sense ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Momentary Happiness ◽  
Error Dynamics

We offer an account of mental health and well-being using the predictive processing framework (PPF). According to this framework, the difference between mental health and psychopathology can be located in the goodness of the predictive model as a regulator of action. What is crucial for avoiding the rigid patterns of thinking, feeling and acting associated with psychopathology is the regulation of action based on the valence of affective states. In PPF, valence is modelled as error dynamics—the change in prediction errors over time . Our aim in this paper is to show how error dynamics can account for both momentary happiness and longer term well-being. What will emerge is a new neurocomputational framework for making sense of human flourishing.

Mental Health

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonella Delle Fave ◽  
Luca Negri
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Theoretical Models ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Positive Mental Health ◽  
Assessment Tools ◽  
Human Flourishing ◽  
Indian Medical ◽  
Structural Differences ◽  
Western View ◽  
Health Features

This chapter offers an overview of the scientific approaches to the study of mental health, starting from the historical breakthrough represented by Maria Jahoda’s emphasis on the structural differences between mental health and mental illness, and concluding with the latest theoretical models and interventions formulated within positive psychology. Attention is paid to conceptualizations of human flourishing and psychological well-being, their operationalization and assessment tools, and their use and effectiveness in interventions. Empirical findings on positive mental health features across the life span are summarized. The approach to mental health developed within Asian traditions, and specifically in the Indian medical system of Ayurveda, is discussed in relation to the Western view. New questions and challenges arising from the expansion of knowledge about positive mental health are outlined.

Mental Hygiene: What It Is, Implications, and Future Directions

2021 ◽  
pp. 263207702110003
Author(s):  
Guillaume Tremblay ◽  
Nicole C. Rodrigues ◽  
Sanjiv Gulati
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
Mental Hygiene ◽  
Public Mental Health ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Daily Basis ◽  
Mental Training ◽  
Human Flourishing ◽  
Hygiene Practices ◽  
Health Strategy

Every day, people struggle with mental health challenges; one in five people will experience a mental illness in their lifetime. Innovative approaches to strengthen the public mental health strategy warrant careful deliberation. This article reintroduces and explores the conceptual framework of mental hygiene. The concept of mental hygiene was originally introduced in the early 20th century, with the aim of preventing and treating mental illness and milder mental disorders. The movement lost its momentum shortly thereafter and the concept went largely ignored since then. Mental hygiene is a form of preventive maintenance that can be likened to other hygienic practices. Through the plasticity of the brain, mental training activities can foster healthy cognitive patterns that are conducive to well-being. The article offers a brief overview of some of the mental hygiene practices one can engage in, on a daily basis, to support well-being and assist in preventing mental health issues. Such mental training behaviors may potentially reduce ubiquitous human tendencies to ruminate and mind-wander without awareness, which when in excess correlate with increased activity of the default mode network and susceptibility to the pathogenesis of mental illness, along with impeding human flourishing. The article advocates for the routine engagement in healthy mental hygiene to become a global recommendation.

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