For more than half a century, Thomas Szasz has devoted much of his career to a radical critique of psychiatry. His latest work, Psychiatry: The Science of Lies, is a culmination of his life’s work: to portray the integral role of deception in the history and practice of psychiatry. Szasz argues that the diagnosis and treatment of mental illness stands in the same relationship to the diagnosis and treatment of bodily illness that the forgery of a painting does to the original masterpiece. Art historians and the legal system seek to distinguish forgeries from originals. Those concerned with medicine, on the other hand—physicians, patients, politicians, health insurance providers, and legal professionals—take the opposite stance when faced with the challenge of distinguishing everyday problems in living from bodily diseases, systematically authenticating nondiseases as diseases. The boundary between disease and nondisease—genuine and imitation, truth and falsehood—thus becomes arbitrary and uncertain. There is neither glory nor profit in correctly demarcating what counts as medical illness and medical healing from what does not. Individuals and families wishing to protect themselves from medically and politically authenticated charlatanry are left to their own intellectual and moral resources to make critical decisions about human dilemmas miscategorized as “mental diseases” and about medicalized responses misidentified as “psychiatric treatments.” Delivering his sophisticated analysis in lucid prose and with a sharp wit, Szasz continues to engage and challenge readers of all backgrounds.

The idea of "insanity" pervades every aspect of our daily lives. Here, Szasz contends that the term actually functions as a euphemism for problems in living, as an excuse for crime and misbehaviour, as a stigma for invalidating adversaries - and, generally, as a metaphor and legal fiction.

"Help! I need somebody--but is it a guru or a shrink?" In response to this dilemma, the philosopher Jacob Needleman arranged a lecture series at the University of California Medical Center in San Francisco, in the hope of clarifying both the distinctions and the interrelations between these two paths of self-knowledge, psychotherapy and the ancient spiritual disciplines. This book is the enriching and often electrifying result. The eight lecturers--psychotherapists interested in the further reaches of self-development and spiritual teachers concerned with helping people live--dispatch the basic question with little ultimate disagreement. The consensus, most concisely expressed by British therapist A. C. Robin Skynner, is that therapy and the sacred traditions lead in quite different, one might say perpendicular, directions: therapy towards integration and functioning on the plane of normal daily life, spiritual discipline towards the far more difficult and demanding ascent into transcendence and self-evolution. But while the confusion of the two can be dangerous, properly understood they can assist and enhance each other." - Kirkus Reviews, 10/15/76.

Human behaviour, which holds a fascination for most people, can best be viewed as lying on a spectrum - from normality at one end to extreme deviation at the other, with obvious grey areas in-between. Even the most deviant-seeming behaviours appear to have their counterparts in normality, and such behaviours can often be explained (at least in part) when viewed in their socio-cultural and psychological context.

This interpretation of the way female sexuality was viewed by the nineteenth-century European medical profession characterizes an attitude based on massive ignorance and prejudice

"More than fifty years ago, Thomas Szasz showed that the concept of mental illness - a disease of the mind - is an oxymoron, a metaphor, a myth. Disease, in the medical sense, affects only the body. He also demonstrated that civil commitment and the insanity defense, the paradigmatic practices of psychiatry, are incompatible with the political values of personal responsibility and individual liberty. The psychiatric establishment's rejection of Szasz's critique posed no danger to his work: its defense of coercions and excuses as "therapy" supported his argument regarding the metaphorical nature of mental illness and the transparent immorality of brutal psychiatric control masquerading as humane medical care." "In the late 1960s, the launching of the so-called antipsychiatry movement vitiated Szasz's effort to present a precisely formulated conceptual and political critique of the medical identity of psychiatry. Led by the Scottish psychiatrist R. D. Laing, the antipsychiatrists used the term to attract attention to themselves and to deflect attention from what they did, which included coercions and excuses based on psychiatric principles and power." "For this reason, Szasz rejected, and continues to reject, psychiatry and antipsychiatry with equal vigor. Subsuming his work under the rubric of antipsychiatry betrays and negates it just as surely and effectively as subsuming it under the rubric of psychiatry. In Antipsychiatry: Quackery Squared, Szasz argues that his writings belong to neither psychiatry nor antipsychiatry, They stem from conceptual analysis, social-political criticism, and common sense."--BOOK JACKET

Conceptual Issues in Psychological Medicine is a collection of papers written by the celebrated psychiatrist, Michael Shepherd, who was one of the originators of psychiatric epidemiology in the UK and a leading social psychiatrist of his generation. He designed and implemented some of the first systematic studies into what are now widely recognised clinical syndromes. His extensive research experience and his advocacy of a scientific approach to social psychiatry form the basis of the essays contained in this book. Covering such issues as the development of research strategy and the difficulties involved in completing psychiatric studies, Shepherd's papers address many of the issues currently facing professionals in this field. He writes authoritatively and engagingly on clinical syndromes, the history of ideas and the use of the epidemiological approach in psychiatry. Conceptual Issues in Psychological Medicine stimulates and informs the reader in equal measure; it will be a welcome addition to the bookshelf of any practitioner of medicine.

Almost everyone has been touched by at least a mild form of depression, and thus has some sense of what severe depressive illness must be like. In addition to the most serious clinical cases which can lead to institutionalization or even suicide, this book explores the "normal" depression we all experience--the inevitable blues that accompany troubled personal relationships, career setbacks, or the death of a loved one. It provides a compelling treatment of questions about the nature of depression, where it comes from, who's at risk, and what it indicates about human experience. Depression is a highly prevalent health problem, affecting about 11 million Americans every year. Its costs are staggering - $43.7 billion annually in lost productivity, lost income, and increased health care costs. These numbers put depression on a par with heart disease as one of the most expensive diseases in the United States today. But, unlike heart disease, depression is widely misunderstood. About two-thirds of the cases of depression go undiagnosed and untreated. With a compelling mix of information, illustration, and interpretation, David B. Cohen explores the current state of knowledge about depression, including the powerful influence of genetics. In addition to depressive illness, the book deals with related ideas and topics such as mourning, mania, the rhythms of sleep, self concepts, and suicide. Insights from psychology and psychiatry are blended with history, literature, current events, and personal observation, and topped off with a dose of common sense.

Divided Staffs, Divided Selves offers a case-centered approach to the teaching of health care ethics to a wide range of students and clinicians. The book provides both clinical case material and a method for engaging in a dialogue regarding difficult decisions in the mental health care field that have potentially tragic choices. The essays that introduce the volume place the ethical problems of treating mentally ill people in the context of the health care ethics movement and traditions of ethical decision making. The individual cases are real, derived from actual clinical and consultative experiences.

Attempts to explain the many perplexing phenomena of marriages and marital therapy. Shaped by the philosophical conceptions of the inevitable existential limitations of all people, this text describes how each couple creates a unique system of interaction with each another.

The precise relationship between high-functioning autism and Asperger Syndrome is still a subject of debate. This volume provides a general overview of the disorder and present diverse opinions on diagnosis and assessment, neuropsychological issues, treatment, and related conditions. A special section features personal essays by individuals diagnosed with autism or Asperger Syndrome. The result is a comprehensive and useful survey of the current state of the field that will be of great interest to clinicians, teachers, researchers, and parents.

""Three Hundred Years of Psychiatry, 1535-1860: A History Presented in Selected English Texts"" is a comprehensive book written by Richard Hunter. The book traces the history of psychiatry from the 16th century to the mid-19th century, focusing on the development of psychiatric theories and practices during this period. The author presents a collection of selected English texts that offer a glimpse into the evolution of psychiatric understanding, including the works of prominent figures such as John Locke, William Cullen, and Philippe Pinel. The book is divided into four parts, each representing a distinct period in the history of psychiatry. Part one covers the period from 1535 to 1700, during which time the concept of madness was still closely tied to religious beliefs. Part two covers the period from 1700 to 1800, during which time the focus shifted towards the medicalization of mental illness. Part three covers the period from 1800 to 1850, during which time the first psychiatric institutions were established and the study of mental illness became more scientific in nature. Part four covers the period from 1850 to 1860, during which time new theories of mental illness emerged, including the idea of moral treatment.Throughout the book, the author provides insightful commentary on the texts and their relevance to the broader history of psychiatry. The book is an essential resource for anyone interested in the history of mental health and the evolution of psychiatric theory and practice.This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the old original and may contain some imperfections such as library marks and notations. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions, that are true to their original work.

1964 HARDCOVER w/DUST JACKET

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work. This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

The distinguished Austrian psychiatrist examines the essential reality and significance of mankind's unconscious spirituality and awareness of the God within and the interrelationship between psychotherapy and theology.

softcover book

Excerpts from works by leading world authors illustrate the importance of literature in exploring the human personality and enabling laymen to understand the sociopsychological manifestations and effects of mental illness

‘An impure Joan of Arc’ or ‘a radiant Penthesilea’—Theroigne de Mericourt remains one of the most misrepresented figures of the French revolution. Theroigne loved the Revolution; she refused the roles prescribed by her sex; and, at the age of thirty-one, she lost her reason. From these three facts, historians have woven tenacious myths about women, madness and revolution which reveal more about their own phantasms and allegiances than about Theroigne herself. Elisabeth Roudinesco’s exploration of Theroigne’s life and afterlife restores a much-wronged woman to her rightful place in history. After vividly tracing Theroigne’s life, Roudinesco applies psychoanalysis to history, and history to psychiatry. She analyses the founding fathers of the asylum and the historians of the French Revolution, using their own assessments of Theroigne as revealing evidence. Her book adds a new dimension to our understanding of the French Revolution, early feminism and the birth of the modern asylum.