Epilepsy and Psychosocial Adjustment: A Selective Review

Abstract

It has become increasingly acknowledged that the social and psychological consequences of leaving epilepsy may be more debilitating than the seizures themselves. Recently these psychosocial aspects of epilepsy have become the emphasis of much research, and different models for understanding psychosocial consequences have become evident. In this article recent research has been reviewed and has been classified as belonging either to a medical model or a sociological model of understanding these psychosocial aspects of epilepsy. Both models have been found to assist in understanding psychosocial aspects of epilepsy, with the ‘newer’ sociological approach acting as a challenge to the hegemony of the older, more traditional medical understanding.