The psychosocial approach looks at individuals in the context of the combined influence that psychological factors and the surrounding social environment have on their physical and mental wellness and their ability to function.
[1] Psychiatrist Dr Adolf Meyer in the late 19th century stated that: "We cannot understand the individual presentation of mental illness, [and perpetuating factors] without knowing how that person functions in the environment."
The relationship between mental and emotional wellbeing and the environment was first commonly applied by Freudian ego-psychologist Professor Erik Erikson in his description of the stages of psychosocial development in his book called Childhood and Society in 1950.
That refers to the lack of development or diverse atrophy of the psychosocial self, often occurring alongside other dysfunctions that may be physical, emotional, or cognitive in nature.
It is a systematic inquiry that arises from the introduction of dynamic interaction; it is an ongoing process that continues throughout a treatment, and is characterized by the circularity of cause-effect/effect-cause.
In assessment, the clinician/health care professional identifies the problem with the client, takes stock of the resources that are available for dealing with it, and considers the ways in which it might be solved from an educated hypothesis formed by data collection.
It aims at easing resumption of normal life, facilitating affected people's participation to their convalescence and preventing pathological consequences of potentially traumatic situations.