Examining Mental Health Through Social Constructionism : The Language of Mental Health

This book explores social constructionism and the language of mental distress. Mental health research has traditionally been dominated by genetic and biomedical explanations that provide only partial explanations. However, process research that utilises qualitative methods has grown in popularity. Situated within this new strand of research, the authors examine and critically assess some of the different contributions that social constructionism has made to the study of mental distress and to how those diagnosed are conceptualized and labeled. This will be an invaluable introduction and source of practical strategies for academics, researchers and students as well as clinical practitioners, mental health professionals, and others working with mental health such as educationalists and social workers. Front Matter ....Pages i-xvii The Critical Turn to Language in the Field of Mental Health (Michelle O’Reilly, Jessica Nina Lester)....Pages 1-29 History of Mental Health and Mental Illness (Michelle O’Reilly, Jessica Nina Lester)....Pages 31-51 Classification Systems and Diagnostic Processes (Michelle O’Reilly, Jessica Nina Lester)....Pages 53-73 Critical Perspectives in Psychiatry: Anti- and Critical Psychiatry (Michelle O’Reilly, Jessica Nina Lester)....Pages 75-105 Models of Disability and the Translation to Psychiatric Categories (Michelle O’Reilly, Jessica Nina Lester)....Pages 107-136 Constructions of Stigma (Michelle O’Reilly, Jessica Nina Lester)....Pages 137-167 The Rhetoric of Evidence-Based Practice (Michelle O’Reilly, Jessica Nina Lester)....Pages 169-197 Language-Based Methodologies for Studying Mental Health (Michelle O’Reilly, Jessica Nina Lester)....Pages 199-227 Empirical Examples: Language, Mental Health, and Therapeutic Approaches (Michelle O’Reilly, Jessica Nina Lester)....Pages 229-259 Empirical Examples: Language and Child Mental Health (Michelle O’Reilly, Jessica Nina Lester)....Pages 261-298 Conclusions: Thinking About the Future of Mental Health (Michelle O’Reilly, Jessica Nina Lester)....Pages 299-314 Back Matter ....Pages 315-366