Enactive approaches to conceptualising psychopathology

Enactivism is a philosophy of mind that understands cognition as fundamentally embodied, embedded in environmental contexts, and constituted through active engagement with the world. What are the consequences of such a view for the conceptualization, study, and treatment of mental disorder? This paper aims to introduce readers to ‘enactive psychiatry’, a perspective that is currently emerging as a novel and integrative theoretical framework for the study of psychopathology. First, enactivism is overviewed, including a summary listing of key conceptual resources it brings. This is then followed by critical discussion of three leading conceptual frameworks in enactive psychiatry: Sanneke de Haan's ‘Enactive Psychiatry’, Michelle Maiese's ‘Enactive Medical Model’, and Kristopher Nielsen's ‘3e Psychopathology’. Key points of convergence and divergence across these frameworks are drawn out, regarding both how these frameworks conceptualize the structure of mental disorders, and how they demarcate mental disorder from normal functioning. Finally, a brief discussion overviews some of the apparent strengths and weaknesses of enactive psychiatry as a wider approach. It is suggested that enactive psychiatry has strong integrative potential and presents an empirically plausible and fruitful framework from which to consider mental disorders.