{"id":6597,"date":"2020-08-31T19:55:00","date_gmt":"2020-08-31T16:55:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/episod-podcast\/the-science-behind-mental-health\/"},"modified":"2026-09-14T15:32:20","modified_gmt":"2026-09-14T12:32:20","slug":"the-science-behind-mental-health","status":"publish","type":"podcast-episode","link":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/podcast-episode\/the-science-behind-mental-health\/","title":{"rendered":"The science behind mental health"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In this episode, the young researchers from the MHR team, Dan Mirea and Larisa Dinu, explore the science behind mental health and mental disorders. They discuss a range of topics, including the diagnostic system and its limitations, the biological and psychological theories underlying psychiatric disorders, how different types of treatment work and the evidence on which they are based, and, finally, the place of mental health within our overall health.<\/p>\n\n<div class=\"gb-accordion\">\n\n<div class=\"gb-accordion__item\">\n\n<button class=\"gb-accordion__toggle gb-accordion__toggle-0886f316\" id=\"gb-accordion-toggle-0886f316\">\n\n<span class=\"gb-text\">Episode resources<\/span>\n\n\n\n<span class=\"gb-accordion__toggle-icon gb-accordion__toggle-icon-7d31f135\"><span class=\"gb-accordion__toggle-icon-open\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 448 512\" width=\"1em\" height=\"1em\" aria-hidden=\"true\" role=\"img\"><path d=\"M207.029 381.476L12.686 187.132c-9.373-9.373-9.373-24.569 0-33.941l22.667-22.667c9.357-9.357 24.522-9.375 33.901-.04L224 284.505l154.745-154.021c9.379-9.335 24.544-9.317 33.901.04l22.667 22.667c9.373 9.373 9.373 24.569 0 33.941L240.971 381.476c-9.373 9.372-24.569 9.372-33.942 0z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><span class=\"gb-accordion__toggle-icon-close\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 448 512\" width=\"1em\" height=\"1em\" aria-hidden=\"true\" role=\"img\"><path d=\"M240.971 130.524l194.343 194.343c9.373 9.373 9.373 24.569 0 33.941l-22.667 22.667c-9.357 9.357-24.522 9.375-33.901.04L224 227.495 69.255 381.516c-9.379 9.335-24.544 9.317-33.901-.04l-22.667-22.667c-9.373-9.373-9.373-24.569 0-33.941L207.03 130.525c9.372-9.373 24.568-9.373 33.941-.001z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/span>\n\n<\/button>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"gb-accordion__content gb-accordion__content-34c0323b\" id=\"gb-accordion-content-34c0323b\">\n\n<p class=\"gb-text\"><strong>Articles:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"gb-text gb-text-ad3fd58d\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theatlantic.com\/health\/archive\/2013\/05\/the-real-problems-with-psychiatry\/275371\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The Real Problems With Psychiatry<\/a> | Interview with Gary Greenberg | EN<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>criticism of the diagnostic system as not being a product of science<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"gb-text gb-text-1fcd34cc\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.psychiatrictimes.com\/view\/debunking-two-chemical-imbalance-myths-again\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Debunking the two chemical imbalance myths, again<\/a> | Ronald W Pies | EN<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>debunking the myth of chemical imbalance and introducing the model<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>bio-psycho-socio-cultural of mental disorders<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"gb-text gb-text-fbe61a1d\"><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.simplypsychology.org\/cognitive.html\" target=\"_blank\">Cognitive psychology<\/a> | Saul McLeod | EN<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>explanation of the field of cognitive psychology and how its principles are applied in CBT<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"gb-text gb-text-1e6b0885\"><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"http:\/\/color-mind.ro\/psihoterapia-cognitiv-comportamentala-2\/\" target=\"_blank\">Cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy<\/a> | ColorMind | RO<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>very clear introduction to CBT\/CBT and the conceptual model behind it<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"gb-text gb-text-0e9ca95f\"><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.psychologytoday.com\/us\/blog\/psychologically-minded\/201310\/evidence-based-therapy-science-or-marketing\" target=\"_blank\">Evidence-Based Therapy: Science or Marketing?<\/a> | Jonathan Shedler | EN<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>explanation of the fact that just because CBT is a form of therapy based on evidence and scientific principles does not mean that it is necessarily more effective than eg: psychodynamic therapies<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"gb-text\"><strong>Books:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"gb-text gb-text-33845024\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.elefant.ro\/masters-of-the-mind-exploring-the-story-of-mental-illness-from-ancient-times-to-the-new-millennium-hardcover_26156dfa-99e9-4a09-b888-807bd4edbf2b?gclid=Cj0KCQjw-af6BRC5ARIsAALPIlVRD2wIIXJj7TACD90D_F1PTmSRO_bUh5ajvOIq9wM5M2i7UAi17kEaAksiEALw_wcB\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Masters of the Mind | Theodore Millon<\/a> | EN<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>historical perspective on people&#8217;s and different cultures&#8217; understanding of mental health and disorders<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"gb-text gb-text-ad304642\"><a href=\"https:\/\/carturesti.ro\/carte\/the-inflamed-mind-77388085?gclid=Cj0KCQjw-af6BRC5ARIsAALPIlWCX2rm1QyHoEd3yP_54o10Sqk--t_IICfGNfxOw8jifynrD-bZOXgaAv0jEALw_wcB\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The Inflamed Mind | Edward Bullmore<\/a> | EN<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>the book in which the inflammatory theory of depression is presented by its author<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"gb-text gb-text-dd6729d3\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Crazy-Like-Us-Globalization-American\/dp\/1416587098\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The Globalization of the American Psyche<\/a> | Ethan Watters | EN<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>about another component of the faulty diagnostic system that we haven&#8217;t gotten around to addressing, namely the absence of cultural differences in the understanding of disorders<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"gb-text\"><strong>Videos:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"gb-text gb-text-1018c341\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=UiY6wr--0dE\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The DSM\u2019s Origin Story<\/a> | SciShow Psych | EN<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>about the factors that led to the conception of the diagnostic system in the DSM, none of these factors being linked to empirical evidence<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"gb-text gb-text-01e5d2d7\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=GOK1tKFFIQI\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The Science Behind Depression<\/a> | ASAPScience | subtitrat \u00een RO<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>focused on the theory of neurogenesis, another theory of depression, whereby depression is linked to insufficient regeneration of neurons<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"gb-text\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=2wCbwpnIJsA\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Neuroscience of anxiety<\/a> | Neuro Transmissions | EN<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"gb-text gb-text-bf75a639\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?t=646s&#038;v=u4m65sbqbhY\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Mental disorders as brain disorders<\/a> | TEDTalk-ul lui Thomas Insel | subtitled in RO<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>about psychiatric disorders as brain disorders<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"gb-text gb-text-5b4c50cf\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=EKEWk4oWmjY\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The connection between mental and physical health<\/a> | Pysch Hub Education | EN<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>short animation showing the holistic view of overall health, which includes physical and mental health and is more than the absence of disorders<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":31536,"template":"","podcast_tag":[437,440],"class_list":["post-6597","podcast-episode","type-podcast-episode","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","podcast_tag-medication","podcast_tag-therapy"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>The science behind mental health - Mental Health for Romania<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Young researchers Dan Mirea and Larisa Dinu tell us about the science behind mental health and mental disorders.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/podcast-episode\/the-science-behind-mental-health\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The science behind mental health - Mental Health for Romania\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Young researchers Dan Mirea and Larisa Dinu tell us about the science behind mental health and mental disorders.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/podcast-episode\/the-science-behind-mental-health\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Mental Health for Romania\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/MentalHealthRomania\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-09-14T12:32:20+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Copie-a-fisierului-cover-ep.-stiinta-scaled-e1783880935711.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The science behind mental health - Mental Health for Romania","description":"Young researchers Dan Mirea and Larisa Dinu tell us about the science behind mental health and mental disorders.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/podcast-episode\/the-science-behind-mental-health\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"The science behind mental health - Mental Health for Romania","og_description":"Young researchers Dan Mirea and Larisa Dinu tell us about the science behind mental health and mental disorders.","og_url":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/podcast-episode\/the-science-behind-mental-health\/","og_site_name":"Mental Health for Romania","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/MentalHealthRomania","article_modified_time":"2026-09-14T12:32:20+00:00","og_image":[{"width":2560,"height":2560,"url":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Copie-a-fisierului-cover-ep.-stiinta-scaled-e1783880935711.png","type":"image\/png"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/podcast-episode\/the-science-behind-mental-health\/","url":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/podcast-episode\/the-science-behind-mental-health\/","name":"The science behind mental health - Mental Health for Romania","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/podcast-episode\/the-science-behind-mental-health\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/podcast-episode\/the-science-behind-mental-health\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Copie-a-fisierului-cover-ep.-stiinta-scaled-e1783880935711.png","datePublished":"2020-08-31T16:55:00+00:00","dateModified":"2026-09-14T12:32:20+00:00","description":"Young researchers Dan Mirea and Larisa Dinu tell us about the science behind mental health and mental disorders.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/podcast-episode\/the-science-behind-mental-health\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/podcast-episode\/the-science-behind-mental-health\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/podcast-episode\/the-science-behind-mental-health\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Copie-a-fisierului-cover-ep.-stiinta-scaled-e1783880935711.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Copie-a-fisierului-cover-ep.-stiinta-scaled-e1783880935711.png","width":2560,"height":2560,"caption":"Brain illustration"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/podcast-episode\/the-science-behind-mental-health\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/home\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Podcast Episodes","item":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/podcast\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"The science behind mental health"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/","name":"Mental Health for Romania","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/#organization","name":"Asocia\u021bia Mental Health for Romania","url":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/cropped-logo_square.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/cropped-logo_square.png","width":512,"height":512,"caption":"Asocia\u021bia Mental Health for Romania"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/MentalHealthRomania","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/mental_health_for_romania\/","https:\/\/ro.linkedin.com\/company\/mental-health-for-romania"]}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/podcast-episode\/6597","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/podcast-episode"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/podcast-episode"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/podcast-episode\/6597\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":34698,"href":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/podcast-episode\/6597\/revisions\/34698"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/31536"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6597"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"podcast_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mentalhealthforromania.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/podcast_tag?post=6597"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}