Psychotherapeutic Drugs: A Brief Review of Their Effects on Psychological Processes

Abstract

Since the 1950s, psychotherapeutic drugs with increasingly specific behavioral and pharmacological actions have become available for treatment of abnormal behavior. In recent years, behavioral pharmacology has emerged as a new discipline which incorporates behavioral and pharmacological analysis of the effects of psychoactive drugs. Many of the findings in this area are highly relevant for professionals concerned with the treatment of abnormal behavior (i.e., psychiatrists, psychologists, etc.). The present paper attempts to present a brief overview of psychotherapeutic drugs and their effects on behavioral processes with an emphasis on psychological therapy. It is concluded that drugs, in addition to their beneficial effects of relieving symptoms, also have many other effects which may potentially interfere with the acquisition and maintenance of normal behavior.