#Relationalpsychology

Mental health is increasingly understood as more than an individual issue. Relationships and social context play a central role in wellbeing. This perspective invites Thailand to rethink care in schools, workplaces, and communities.

Traditionally, psychology has treated the mind as separate from the body and surroundings. This view, rooted in long-standing theories, has shaped mental health systems worldwide, including in Thailand. Many diagnoses emphasize internal conflicts and cognitive patterns over the social web in which people live.

A growing wave of psychological research and theory is turning the spotlight away from the individual mind and highlighting the profound impact of relationships on mental health. New arguments from the field of relational psychology challenge the traditional view that mental disorders are rooted solely within the individual, calling for a social and interpersonal understanding of mental wellbeing—a perspective with sweeping implications for how Thai society approaches mental health care.