This book explores how people encounter, understand, live with and respond to health risks associated with social economic and political inequality. Complementing a traditional public health approach, it moves beyond a focus on categories of morbidity and their structural causes. Instead the books’ focus is on everyday understandings and actions for people living in unequal social conditions. Making use of a variety of case studies related to physical and mental health, the authors emphasise interpersonal relationships, biographical meanings and the daily tactics of ‘getting by’. These are recurrently linked to the social structural aspects of particular times and places. The book: · Draws upon, applies and extends the biopsychosocial approach, which is well known to students of public health. · Respects and gives due weight to the experience in context of people who live with health inequalities, in domestic and local settings. · Explores notions of personal agency and the contingencies of everyday life, in order to offer a focused psychosocial corrective to a public health tradition dominated by top down reasoning. This is an important read for all those seeking to understand the complexities of health inequalities holistically in their studies, research and practice. The book brings together thinking in the fields of public health, sociology, mental health and social policy.

A classic and long-trusted resource that provides short summaries of all the key theories, concepts and terminology associated with mental health. Each entry is neatly summarised and thoroughly referenced giving the reader an immediate and thorough entry point to the subject. Structured into four sections, the text starts with entries related to Mental Health and Mental Abnormality, before moving onto Mental Health Services and Society. The new edition offers: 70 concise chapters including new entries on social networks and loneliness Updates across all chapters to align with contemporary, critical debates in mental health Appropriate consideration of the intersection of Covid-19 and mental health An essential guide for students of mental health studies, health, nursing, social work, education, psychology, counselling and psychotherapy.

Originally published in 1983, fifteen well-known psychologists and psychotherapists write about their personal interests to give the reader a vivid picture of the complexities of psychotherapy in Britain at the time. They explore aspects of the interaction and intersection of the psychological and psychotherapeutic worlds, paying particular attention to the practical and theoretical controversies involved in this overlap. The first half of the book concerns itself with problems of theory and practice in psychology and psychotherapy, while the second half deals with professional conflicts and political issues impinging upon the practice of psychotherapy by psychologists. Areas of concern and controversy that are scrutinised include the problematic relationship between academic psychology and psychotherapy; doubts and certainties in psychotherapy; the psychology of helping; the relevance of the psychodynamic tradition; inter-professional disputes; women and psychotherapy; and social class issues in psychotherapy.

This book explores how people encounter, understand, live with and respond to health risks associated with social economic and political inequality. Complementing a traditional public health approach, it moves beyond a focus on categories of morbidity and their structural causes. Instead the books’ focus is on everyday understandings and actions for people living in unequal social conditions. Making use of a variety of case studies related to physical and mental health, the authors emphasise interpersonal relationships, biographical meanings and the daily tactics of ‘getting by’. These are recurrently linked to the social structural aspects of particular times and places. The book: · Draws upon, applies and extends the biopsychosocial approach, which is well known to students of public health. · Respects and gives due weight to the experience in context of people who live with health inequalities, in domestic and local settings. · Explores notions of personal agency and the contingencies of everyday life, in order to offer a focused psychosocial corrective to a public health tradition dominated by top down reasoning. This is an important read for all those seeking to understand the complexities of health inequalities holistically in their studies, research and practice. The book brings together thinking in the fields of public health, sociology, mental health and social policy.

Riven by poor governance and outright corruption, the British Psychological Society (BPS) may now be in terminal decline. Individual members have left it in despair and some groups (for example clinical, educational and organisational psychologists) have already organised themselves outside of the Society, in protest against its mismanagement and distorted priorities. Onlookers are bemused by a simple fact: a psychological organisation has demonstrated total incompetence at understanding itself. Accordingly, today, the BPS is neither a learned nor a learning organisation. This book describes this organisational crisis. It offers a critical account of the Society’s recent history, which has mostly been hidden from public view, due to a lack of suitable democratic structures to ensure proper public scrutiny. Though it has charitable status, its governance has lacked independent trustees. Instead, priorities in the organisation have been compromised repeatedly by conflicts of interest, with an oligarchy of recycled names losing sight of the Society’s shortcomings. In more recent times, these problems have been amplified by a managerial culture with little respect for academic integrity. These weak governance arrangements have led to policy capture by some interest groups which have led to public safety being threatened by the production of poor psychological advice to those on the outside. Those ordinary members opposing this skewed and risky advice have been suppressed by those at the top of the organisation. This important book aims to provide a platform for ordinary members whose criticisms have thus far been suppressed. By promoting the voices of these objectors and exposing the cracks within the organisation, it attempts to bring truth to power.

This is the first dedicated text to explain and explore the utility of critical realism for psychologists, offering it as a helpful middle ground between positivism and postmodernism. By introducing its basic concepts, Pilgrim explains critical realism to psychologists and shows how the interface between the natural and social worlds, and the internal and external, can be used to examine human life. This both/and aspect of human life is important in another sense: we are both determined and determining beings, making choices but within the material constraints of both our bodies and the social context of our unique existence. The book offers an exploration of academic and applied psychology with that inward and outward curiosity in mind, beginning with the premise that both inner and outer reality are the legitimate interest of psychologists. In doing so, it shows how critical realism endorses the remaining advantages of positivism and postmodernism, while discarding their philosophical errors. A range of case studies are presented to show how psychologists can use critical realism when working with real life problems, as researchers or practitioners.

Child sexual abuse is a major public policy challenge. Many child protection measures were beginning to reduce its occurrence. However, that progress was impeded by online grooming, the downloading of indecent images of children and even their abuse online in real time. This now places major demands on national and international policing. The book brings together groundbreaking case studies from a wide range of settings. As well as family members and those near the home, offenders can also be found in religious, sporting and childcare settings. This extensive picture is drawn deliberately in order to highlight a split in the academic analysis of child sexual abuse. The mainstream or orthodox view, defended by the author, is that child sexual abuse is an under-reported crime. However, a minority view, presented but criticised, is that it is a moral panic created by public hysteria, child protection experts and campaigning politicians. By the end of the book, this division of academic opinion and its implications for public policy are explored in detail. The book is essential reading for anyone interested in preventing child sexual abuse and the dilemmas of responding to both victims and perpetrators. It will be of particular use to practitioners in social work, the police and in the mental health professions.

The emergence of Thatcherism around 1980, which ushered in a period of neo-liberalism in British politics that still resonates today, led musicians, like other artists, to respond to their context of production. This book uses the early work of one of these musicians, Elvis Costello, to explore the relationship between popular music and politics in one historical period. It is not a biography but an exploration of the interaction between a creative musician's works and their context of constraint and opportunity. Pilgrim and Ormrod unpack the political meaning of Thatcherism and deal with matters arising in that political context about Costello's life but which had resonance for many others at the time (and still do). These topics include the politics of race, class, gender and ageing, emphasising the recurring theme of nostalgia in modern and post-modern life. Throughout the book examples are provided of Costello's songs and how they work musically to illustrate or stimulate the contextual discussion. The book will be of significant interest to musicologists, sociologists and social psychologists.

David Pilgrim PhD is Professor of Health & Social Policy in the Department of Sociology, Social Policy and Criminology at the University of Liverpool.

This is the first dedicated text to explain and explore the utility of critical realism for psychologists, offering it as a helpful middle ground between positivism and postmodernism. By introducing its basic concepts, Pilgrim explains critical realism to psychologists and shows how the interface between the natural and social worlds, and the internal and external, can be used to examine human life. This both/and aspect of human life is important in another sense: we are both determined and determining beings, making choices but within the material constraints of both our bodies and the social context of our unique existence. The book offers an exploration of academic and applied psychology with that inward and outward curiosity in mind, beginning with the premise that both inner and outer reality are the legitimate interest of psychologists. In doing so, it shows how critical realism endorses the remaining advantages of positivism and postmodernism, while discarding their philosophical errors. A range of case studies are presented to show how psychologists can use critical realism when working with real life problems, as researchers or practitioners.

Mental health is very complicated and much of it remains inherently or contingently mysterious. And yet, if we were to take the rhetoric of the American Psychiatric Association, the World Health Organization or (even more dubiously) the drug companies seriously, we should all believe in a confident version of scientific incrementalism (our knowledge is constantly refining and our interventions are becoming more effective with the passing years). This book steers a middle way between psychiatric positivism and the nihilism of the recent French poststructuralist tradition.

The emergence of Thatcherism around 1980, which ushered in a period of neo-liberalism in British politics that still resonates today, led musicians, like other artists, to respond to their context of production. This book uses the early work of one of these musicians, Elvis Costello, to explore the relationship between popular music and politics in one historical period. It is not a biography but an exploration of the interaction between a creative musician's works and their context of constraint and opportunity. Pilgrim and Ormrod unpack the political meaning of Thatcherism and deal with matters arising in that political context about Costello's life but which had resonance for many others at the time (and still do). These topics include the politics of race, class, gender and ageing, emphasising the recurring theme of nostalgia in modern and post-modern life. Throughout the book examples are provided of Costello's songs and how they work musically to illustrate or stimulate the contextual discussion. The book will be of significant interest to musicologists, sociologists and social psychologists.

How do we understand mental health problems in their social context? A former BMA Medical Book of the Year award winner, this book provides a sociological analysis of major areas of mental health and illness. The book considers contemporary and historical aspects of sociology, social psychiatry, policy and therapeutic law to help students develop an in-depth and critical approach to this complex subject. New developments for the sixth edition include: *Brand new chapter on aging and older people *Updated material on social class, ethnicity, user involvement, young people and adolescence *New coverage on prisons legalism and the rise of digital mental health management and delivery A classic in its field, this well-established textbook offers a rich, contemporary and well-crafted overview of mental health and illness unrivalled by competitors and is essential reading for students and professionals studying a range of medical sociology and health-related courses. It is also highly suitable for trainee mental health workers in the fields of social work, nursing, clinical psychology and psychiatry. This classic text book has for many years provided the definitive sociological lens with which to understand the range of conceptual approaches to understanding mental 'illness' in the historical journey from madness to emotional health and the complex interdisciplinary challenges of providing appropriate care or treatment to human distress and suffering. This updated edition continues to provide illuminating insights and clarifications not only for students but for academic researchers and scholars at all levels. Gillian Bendelow, Professor in Sociology of Health and Medicine, School of Applied Social Science, University of Brighton A Sociology of Mental Health and Illness is a sociological classic - for three decades now it has been essential reading for all sociologists (and other social scientists) wishing to learn more about mental (ill-)health and society, be they students or professional teachers and researchers. It has also long been a beacon, and will continue to guide, mental health practitioners keen to better understand and engage with the social dimensions of their work. A Sociology of Mental Health and Illness is an incomparable resource. Professor Martyn Pickersgill, University of Edinburgh, UK The relationship between sociology and mental health has been well documented over the years. Social factors such as poverty, social stress, socioeconomic disadvantages, inequality, social exclusion have been implicated for increased rates of mental health problems. Unfortunately, psychiatry has not engaged sufficiently with sociology. "A Sociology of Mental Health and Illness" has covered this disparity. The sixth edition is a most welcome addition updating social trends and new sociological material relevant to mental health, more emphasis on service users' participation and the emerged evidence base. It is a classic that should be an essential reading for all mental health professionals. Nick Bouras, Emeritus Professor of Psychiatry, King's College London, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience Anne Rogers is Professor of Medical Sociology & Health Systems Implementation at the University of Southampton. David Pilgrim is Visiting Professor of Clinical Psychology at the University of Southampton.

Originally published in 1983, fifteen well-known psychologists and psychotherapists write about their personal interests to give the reader a vivid picture of the complexities of psychotherapy in Britain at the time. They explore aspects of the interaction and intersection of the psychological and psychotherapeutic worlds, paying particular attention to the practical and theoretical controversies involved in this overlap. The first half of the book concerns itself with problems of theory and practice in psychology and psychotherapy, while the second half deals with professional conflicts and political issues impinging upon the practice of psychotherapy by psychologists. Areas of concern and controversy that are scrutinised include the problematic relationship between academic psychology and psychotherapy; doubts and certainties in psychotherapy; the psychology of helping; the relevance of the psychodynamic tradition; inter-professional disputes; women and psychotherapy; and social class issues in psychotherapy.

Identity politics have taken a strong hold on modern society, in particular online on social media platforms. But to what extent have they contributed to human flourishing? Have they changed the world for the better, and to what extent? David Pilgrim explores identity politics as a 'curate's egg': good and bad in parts. The good, that they shine light on topics that may previously have been neglected. The bad, their tendency towards absolutism and premature certainties. The world is nuanced and contradictory, and our awareness of it is highly partial. Identity politics are an inadequate response to that complexity and mystery of life. They take away the need to give free expression to all views, including those we may not only disagree with but might also find offensive. Pilgrim re-establishes a realist objection to strong social constructivist arguments within social science about gender, sexualities, and putative moral panics. This accessible book is a must-read for anyone with an interest in contemporary policy formation or reform. It will appeal to students and professionals from the fields of sociology, politics, social policy, social work, philosophy, mental health, and public health.

Child sexual abuse is a major public policy challenge. Many child protection measures were beginning to reduce its occurrence. However, that progress was impeded by online grooming, the downloading of indecent images of children and even their abuse online in real time. This now places major demands on national and international policing. The book brings together groundbreaking case studies from a wide range of settings. As well as family members and those near the home, offenders can also be found in religious, sporting and childcare settings. This extensive picture is drawn deliberately in order to highlight a split in the academic analysis of child sexual abuse. The mainstream or orthodox view, defended by the author, is that child sexual abuse is an under-reported crime. However, a minority view, presented but criticised, is that it is a moral panic created by public hysteria, child protection experts and campaigning politicians. By the end of the book, this division of academic opinion and its implications for public policy are explored in detail. The book is essential reading for anyone interested in preventing child sexual abuse and the dilemmas of responding to both victims and perpetrators. It will be of particular use to practitioners in social work, the police and in the mental health professions.

The SAGE Handbook of Mental Health and Illness is a landmark volume, which integrates the conceptual, empirical and evidence-based threads of mental health as an area of study, research and practice. It approaches mental health from two perspectives - firstly as a positive state of well-being and personal and social functioning and secondly as psychological difference or abnormality in its social context. Unique features include: - a broad and inclusive view of the field, providing depth and breadth for the reader - a team of international, multi-disciplinary editors and contributors, and - discussion of the many of the unresolved debates in the field about constructs and causes. The Handbook will be an invaluable resource for postgraduate students, academics and researchers studying mental health in disciplines such as psychiatry, clinical psychology, social work, occupational therapy, nursing and sociology.

A classic and long-trusted resource that provides short summaries of all the key theories, concepts and terminology associated with mental health. Each entry is neatly summarised and thoroughly referenced giving the reader an immediate and thorough entry point to the subject. Structured into four sections, the text starts with entries related to Mental Health and Mental Abnormality, before moving onto Mental Health Services and Society. The new edition offers: 70 concise chapters including new entries on social networks and loneliness Updates across all chapters to align with contemporary, critical debates in mental health Appropriate consideration of the intersection of Covid-19 and mental health An essential guide for students of mental health studies, health, nursing, social work, education, psychology, counselling and psychotherapy.

How do we understand mental health problems in their social context? A former BMA Medical Book of the Year award winner, this book provides a sociological analysis of major areas of mental health and illness. The book considers contemporary and historical aspects of sociology, social psychiatry, policy and therapeutic law to help students develop an in-depth and critical approach to this complex subject.New developments for the fifth edition include: Brand new chapter on prisons, criminal justice and mental healthExpanded coverage of stigma, class and social networksUpdated material on the Mental Capacity Act, Mental Health Act and the Deprivation of Liberty A classic in its field, this well established textbook offers a rich and well-crafted overview of mental health and illness unrivalled by competitors and is essential reading for students and professionals studying a range of medical sociology and health-related courses. It is also highly suitable for trainee mental health workers in the fields of social work, nursing, clinical psychology and psychiatry. "Rogers and Pilgrim go from strength to strength! This fifth edition of their classic text is not only a sociology but also a psychology, a philosophy, a history and a polity. It combines rigorous scholarship with radical argument to produce incisive perspectives on the major contemporary questions concerning mental health and illness. The authors admirably balance judicious presentation of the range of available understandings with clear articulation of their own positions on key issues. This book is essential reading for everyone involved in mental health work." Christopher Dowrick, Professor of Primary Medical Care, University of Liverpool, UK"Pilgrim and Rogers have for the last twenty years given us the key text in the sociology of mental health and illness. Each edition has captured the multi-layered and ever changing landscape of theory and practice around psychiatry and mental health, providing an essential tool for teachers and researchers, and much loved by students for the dexterity in combining scope and accessibility. This latest volume, with its focus on community mental health, user movements criminal justice and the need for inter-agency working, alongside the more classical sociological critiques around social theories and social inequalities, demonstrates more than ever that sociological perspectives are crucial in the understanding and explanation of mental and emotional healthcare and practice, hence its audience extends across the related disciplines to everyone who is involved in this highly controversial and socially relevant arena." Gillian Bendelow, School of Law Politics and Sociology, University of Sussex, UK"From the classic bedrock studies to contemporary sociological perspectives on the current controversy over which scientific organizations will define diagnosis, Rogers and Pilgrim provide a comprehensive, readable and elegant overview of how social factors shape the onset and response to mental health and mental illness. Their sociological vision embraces historical, professional and socio-cultural context and processes as they shape the lives of those in the community and those who provide care; the organizations mandated to deliver services and those that have ended up becoming unsuitable substitutes; and the successful and unsuccessful efforts to improve the lives through science, challenge and law." Bernice Pescosolido, Distinguished Professor of Sociology, Indiana University, USA

The second edition of this acclaimed book offers a critical analysis of the transition from institutional to community care for people with mental health problems. Despite the almost complete abandonment of the old Victorian asylum system, the powerful cultural legacy of segregation remains potent in modern thought. Rogers and Pilgrim analyse the impact of new policies introduced by the Labour government since it came to power in 1997, identifying both the processes and causes of policy change and assessing its value in the context of longer term debates about madness and distress.

For most of us, the term 'recovery' in mental health implies hope and normality for those suffering from emotional distress. It is understandable why recovery has therefore become a significant goal for mental health services.
But what does recovery mean for those who are struggling to see it through? Is the emphasis on recovery always a positive thing? This book takes a critical sociological look at personal and public assumptions and understandings. In particular:
- It explores what the recovery movement signifies today, offering readers a critical, reflexive view of its scientific, policy and political consequences.
- It considers what recovery means from social, medical and patient perspectives, and the implications of these conflicting views,
- It reveals some of the risks and benefits for people with mental health problems encountering a system that expects them to recover.
Offering a comprehensive and thought-provoking overview of the concept of recovery from mental illness, this book is a must-have for students studying mental health across a range of subjects, including Sociology, Social Work, Psychology and Nursing.