Unpicking the Entanglement: A Perceived Causal Network of Biopsychosocial Factors for Mental Health

Research on causal beliefs about mental health often overlooks the complex entanglement of biopsychosocial factors and the role of social causes in particular. To unpick perceptions of the interplay between these factors, we pre-registered a study in which a UK-representative lay sample rated the causal influence between 20 biopsychosocial causes (two biological, seven psychological, 11 social) linked to mental health and poverty. Psychological factors were more strongly perceived to be effects than causes, and were perceived to be causally influenced by both biological and social factors. Stronger between-category than within-category causes reveal a contrast between lay perceptions and network approaches to mental health symptoms, which typically emphasise connections between psychological factors independent of biological and social causes. Overall, we conclude that this sample appreciate the complex interplay between adverse biopsychosocial factors, but primarily view this as operating from biological and social factors to psychological outcomes.