The Sociology of Mental Illness A Comprehensive Reader

by McLeod, Jane D.; Wright, Eric R.

• ISBN13: 9780195381719
• ISBN10: 0195381718
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2009-04-08
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

The Sociology of Mental Illness is a comprehensive collection of readings designed to help students develop a nuanced and sophisticated appreciation of the most important, heated--and fascinating--controversies in the field. Drawing primarily from sociological sources, the text features both classical and contemporary selections that cover the full range of sociological topics, perspectives, and debates, including the social construction of mental illness, the social origins of mental illness, and contemporary mental health treatment. This rich, varied assortment gives students a "roadmap" to the evolution and development of sociological research over time and insight into key controversies in the field. Selections include such classical readings as Scheff's original statement of labeling theory, contemporary reports on the prevalence of mental illness in countries around the world, and recent analyses of the changing treatment system. The readings are organized progressively in order to help students recognize the dynamic character of mental health research and the important role that controversies play in advancements in the field; this organization also gives students the tools they need to formulate their own views and opinions on crucial matters. A versatile, engaging text, The Sociology of Mental Illness is ideal for undergraduate and graduate courses in the sociology of mental illness.

Author Biography

Jane D. McLeod is Professor and Associate Dean of the Faculties Department of Sociology at Indiana University-Bloomington.
Eric R. Wright is Professor and Director of the Center for Health Policy, School of Public and Environmental Affairs, at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	p. ix
Contributors	p. xi
Introduction	p. xvii
Definitions of Mental Illness	p. 1
What Is Mental Illness? Psychiatric Perspectives	p. 3
"Medical Model of Madness: The Emergence of Mental Illness"	p. 3
"Mental Illness as Psychiatric Disorder"	p. 26
What Is Mental Illness? Sociological Perspectives	p. 37
"The Discovery of Hyperkinesis"	p. 37
"The Three Faces of PMS: The Professional, Gendered, and Scientific Structuring of a Psychiatric Disorder"	p. 46
Culture and the Definition of Mental Illness	p. 63
"What Is a Psychiatric Diagnosis?"	p. 63
"Did Antidepressants Depress Japan?"	p. 74
Prevalence and Patterns of Mental Illness	p. 81
The Measurement of Mental Health and Mental Illness	p. 83
"Issues in Mental Health Assessment"	p. 83
"The Categorical Versus Dimensional Controversy in the Sociology of Mental Illness"	p. 99
"Measurement for a Human Science"	p. 110
Current Prevalence Estimates in the United States	p. 115
"Prevalence and Treatment of Mental Disorders, 1990-2003"	p. 115
"The Epidemic in Mental Illness: Clinical Fact or Survey Artifact?"	p. 132
Current Cross-National Prevalence Estimates	p. 140
"Lifetime Prevalence and Age-of-Onset Distributions of Mental Disorders in the World Health Organizations' World Mental Health Survey Initiative"	p. 140
The Social Origins of Mental Health and Illness	p. 159
Basic Concepts	p. 161
"Research in Mental Health: Social Etiology versus Social Consequences"	p. 161
"The Sociological Study of Stress"	p. 170
"Multiple Identities and Psychological Well-Being: A Reformulation and Test of the Social Isolation Hypothesis"	p. 189
"The Epidemiology of Social Stress"	p. 207
Roles, Social Statuses, and Mental Health	p. 233
"Sex Differences in Distress: Real or Artifact?"	p. 233
"Revisiting the Relationships among Gender, Marital Status, and Mental Health"	p. 249
"Clarifying the Relationship between Parenthood and Depression"	p. 273
"Low Socioeconomic Status and Mental Disorders: A Longitudinal Study of Selection and Causation during Young Adulthood"	p. 294
"Recession and Well-Being"	p. 316
"Racial Differences in Physical and Mental Health: Socioeconomic Status, Stress, and Discrimination"	p. 336
"Childhood Parental Loss and Adult Depression"	p. 357
"Status, Role, and Resource Explanations for Age Patterns in Psychological Distress"	p. 375
"The Struggle to Gauge a War's Psychological Cost"	p. 398
Stigma and the Social Dimensions of the Experience of Mental Illness	p. 407
Labeling	p. 409
"The Role of the Mentally Ill and the Dynamics of Mental Disorder: A Research Framework"	p. 409
"Societal Reaction as an Explanation of Mental Illness: An Evaluation"	p. 422
"A Modified Labeling Theory Approach to Mental Disorders: An Empirical Assessment"	p. 433
Stigma	p. 460
"Americans' Views of Mental Illness and Health at Century's End: Continuity and Change"	p. 460
Help-seeking and Utilization	p. 480
"The Moral Career of the Mental Patient"	p. 480
"The Social Dynamics of Responding to Mental Health Problems"	p. 512
"Illness and Identity"	p. 528
The History and Social Organization of Mental Health Policy and Treatment	p. 547
Sociohistorical Perspectives on Mental Health Treatment and Policy	p. 549
"The New World of the Asylum"	p. 549
"Cycles of Reform in the Care of the Chronically Mentally Ill"	p. 569
"Psychiatric Hospital Capacity, Homelessness, and Crime Arrest Rates"	p. 585
Sociological Perspectives on Contemporary Mental Health Care and Treatment	p. 605
"Psychiatric Emergency Room Decision Making, Social Control and the `Undeserving Sick'"	p. 605
"Labeling Mental Illness: The Effects of Received Services and Perceived Stigma on Life Satisfaction"	p. 625
"Communities of Care: A Theoretical Perspective on Case Management Models in Mental Health"	p. 645
"Reluctant Managers and Ideologies of Care"	p. 671
Mental Illness, The Family, and Society	p. 695
Mental Illness and the Family	p. 697
"Caregiver Stress and Dimensions of Family Burden"	p. 697
"Navigating the Storm of Mental Illness: Phases in the Family's Journey"	p. 712
Mental Illness and Social Problems	p. 733
"Police as Streetcorner Psychiatrist: Managing the Mentally Ill"	p. 733
"Mental Disorder and Violence: An Examination of Stressful Life Events and Social Support"	p. 753
"Assessing the Economic Costs of Serious Mental Illness"	p. 772
"There's No Place Like (a) Home: Ontological Security Among Persons with Serious Mental Illness in the United States"	p. 776
The Consumer and Family Movements	p. 795
"From Ex-patient Alternatives to Consumer Options: Consequences of Consumerism for Psychiatric Consumers and the Ex-patient Movement"	p. 795
The Future of the Mental Health Care System	p. 824
"Fixing the System"	p. 824
Excerpts from the executive summary of the President's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health's final report	p. 843
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