What is etiology?

A concept widely used both in psychology and in other sciences. What exactly does it mean?

Since the most remote antiquity, human beings have always wondered about reality and the circumstances surrounding their passage through the world. Where do we and what surrounds us come from? Where are we going? Why do we exist? How do we explain the creatures, conditions and phenomena we observe? And one of the questions that perhaps we have asked ourselves the most when observing a phenomenon, performance or situation: what is its cause?

It is possible that when we hear a doctor, psychologist or other professional speak, he or she will at some point use the word etiology when answering any of the above questions, a word that may be unfamiliar or unfamiliar to most people. What is etiology? In this article we will briefly analyze this concept..

The concept etiology

The etiology is the branch of science that deals with the study and analysis of the cause or genesis of things.phenomena or situations.

It is important to note and emphasize that it is a scientific study, analyzing and exploring the variables that can generate the phenomena analyzed. For this purpose, experimental methodology is used and the relationships between different variables are analyzed.

Thus, the concept of etiology would not include beliefs that have not been empirically and experimentally contrasted, even though they also try to give meaning and attribute an origin to different aspects of reality. However, although it is not a term widely used by the general population, it is often used at a popular level to refer to the cause attributed to a phenomenon, even though this linkage has not been demonstrated.

Analyzing a phenomenon in parts

It must be taken into account that in any natural process there are always many factors involved that influence in a more direct or more indirect way what is being studied. Therefore, through etiology we try to clarify which are the main processes or phenomena that explain something, assuming that they will probably not be the only ones and that there are probably many others behind them.

Thus, what we try to do is to break down a phenomenon into parts and focus on its root cause, understanding that the cause of interest must provide a combination of completeness and simplicity to the explanation. completeness and simplicity to the explanation of what is happening..

Not only the direct cause

In addition to the causes themselves, also makes it possible to establish factors and variables that, without being directly the cause, participate in the genesis of what is being studied or that of what is being studied or that hinder it.

The predisposing or protective factors that participate or make less likely the appearance of, for example, a disease are studied and analyzed. We also work on the triggering and potentiating factors.

In conclusion, the variables that interact to cause a situation are studied, taking into account that there is usually no single cause.

Etiology in the sciences

Etiology is a science that in turn is part of many other disciplines, since the latter also explore the reason or cause of the phenomena of a given field of knowledge. In the following we will see how etiology is applied and what it does in different fields.

Medicine

In the field of medicine, the term etiology is used to talk about the cause of diseases and disorders suffered by users or patients.

The origin of a disease is sought in order to understand the mechanism of action and functioning of this and from this knowledge to investigate and generate treatments that can cure it or alleviate its symptoms.

The causes in question are usually Biological and in many cases may be very clear, although the same disease may have different causes in different cases.

2. Psychology

In the field of psychology, etiology also looks for the causes of why an individual has different cognitions or beliefs, whether or not he or she performs a particular behavior, or the factors that cause a mental disorder.

In this field, the study of causes is relatively more complex than in the previous case, since mental phenomena are not directly observable. It is necessary to extrapolate the information from the relationships established between different variables.

3. Sociology

In sociology, etiology is in charge of searching for, studying and analyzing the factors that explain the origin of a given social phenomenon.

Aspects such as leadership, the formation of a group and phenomena such as group polarization, the existence of urban tribes, beliefs and customs are examples of topics whose origin is sought in sociology (and also from social psychology).

4. Biology

As in medicine, biology also analyzes the cause or etiology of the different biological processes that occur in our species as well as in others.

The origin of processes and phenomena such as reproduction, feeding, migration or the characteristics of living beings, for example, are analyzed. Depending on whether the focus is placed on the micro or the macro, the etiology sought will vary.

5. Law

In law, the word etiology is not as commonly used as in the health sciences, but in this field it also has its application.

Thus, we look for the causes that have led to the commission of a crime, or of certain rules and laws, and that is the element that explains more about what happened.

Bibliographical references:

• Aetiology. Oxford English Dictionary (2002). Oxford University Press.
• Longmore, M., Wilkinson, I., Baldwin, A. and Wallin, E. (2014). Oxford Handbook of Clinical Medicine. Oxford: Oxford University Press.