Ideal Mental Health

• This approach ignores what makes someone abnormal and focuses on what makes anyone 'normal'.
• Jahoda suggested we should;

  • Have no symptoms of distress and can cope with stress
  • Have a realistic view of the world and good self esteem without guilt
  • Be independeent and can self-actualise
• Strength - Comprehensive Explaination

  • Has a range of criteria distinguishing mental health from illness - Covers the reasons people need help
  • Checklist we can assess ourselves with and can be used to discuss with professionals
• Limitation - Culture Bound

  • Some of the criteria is located in context of USA and western europe. Self-actualisation may be seen as self-indulgent
  • Independence is high in Germany and Low in Italy
• Few of us attain all of Jahoda's criteria and probably none of us achieve them at the same time or keep them up for very long. It can be disheartening to be held up to impossible standards.