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This volume provides an overview of mental health research conducted by sociologists. It discusses dominant themes such as stress, the community and mental life, family structure, social relations and recovery. The unique contribution of sociology to the study of mental health has a long history stretching from the very foundations of modern sociology. Yet it was only twenty years ago that the Section on Sociology of Mental Health of the American Sociological Association was formed largely in response to a burgeoning rise in the sum and significance of research in the field. Today the section is a large and vibrant one with its own journal, Society and Mental Health. This book explores several of the themes that have occurred during that period, providing both perspectives of the past and prospects for the future. The volume is timely, following closely the 20th anniversary of the section’s formation. Its coverage of key issues and its advancement of the scholarly debates on these issues will prove valuable to students and senior scholars alike.
Stigma leads to poorer health. In The Oxford Handbook of Stigma, Discrimination, and Health, leading scholars identify stigma mechanisms that operate at multiple levels to erode the health of stigmatized individuals and, collectively, produce health disparities. This book provides unique insights concerning the link between stigma and health across various types of stigma and groups.
This book offers the first comprehensive presentation of the sociology of mental health and illness, including original, contemporary contributions by experts in the relevant aspects of the field. Divided into three sections, the chapters cover the general perspectives in the field, the social determinants of mental health, and current policy areas affecting mental health services. The Sociology of Mental Health and Illness is designed for classroom use in sociology, social work, human relations, human services, and psychology. With its useful definitions, overview of the historical, social, and institutional frameworks for understanding mental health and illness, and non-technical style, the text is suitable for advanced undergraduate or lower level graduate students.
Mental illness is many things at once: It is a natural phenomenon that is also shaped by society and culture. It is biological but also behavioral and social. Mental illness is a problem of both the brain and the mind, and this ambiguity presents a challenge for those who seek to accurately classify psychiatric disorders. The leading resource we have for doing so is the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, but no edition of the manual has provided a decisive solution, and all have created controversy. In The Diagnostic System, the sociologist Jason Schnittker looks at the multiple actors involved in crafting the DSM and the many interests that the manual ho...
The second edition of A Handbook for the Study of Mental Health provides a comprehensive review of the sociology of mental health. Chapters by leading scholars and researchers present an overview of historical, social and institutional frameworks. Part I examines social factors that shape psychiatric diagnosis and the measurement of mental health and illness, theories that explain the definition and treatment of mental disorders and cultural variability. Part II investigates effects of social context, considering class, gender, race and age, and the critical role played by stress, marriage, work and social support. Part III focuses on the organization, delivery and evaluation of mental health services, including the criminalization of mental illness, the challenges posed by HIV, and the importance of stigma. This is a key research reference source that will be useful to both undergraduates and graduate students studying mental health and illness from any number of disciplines.
This book presents the latest research on status generalization in a variety of settings. Throughout, the book illustrates how improved status process interventions can reduce unwanted inequalities between advantaged and disadvantaged students, genders, organizational positions, races, and other dynamics that may be impacted by social status and expectation.
The eleventh edition of Sociology of Mental Disorder presents the major issues and research findings on the influence of race, social class, gender, and age on the incidence and prevalence of mental disorder. The text also examines the institutions that help those with mental disorders, mental health law, and public policy. Many important updates are new to this edition: -DSM-5 is thoroughly covered along with the controversy surrounding it. -Updated review of the relationship between mental health and gender. - A revised and more in-depth discussion of mental health and race. -Problems in public policy toward mental disorder are covered. -International trends in community care are reviewed. -Updates of research and citations throughout.
To better understand the idea of "race" in the postgenomic age, social science ought to move beyond merely repeating the "race is a social construct" mantra. This collection directly engages the interface between social-scientific and natural-scientific perspectives on race considering recent developments in genomics. The book provides views that go beyond US-centered or Western-based paradigms on race.
For over a hundred years, millions of Americans have joined together to fight a common enemy by campaigning against diseases. In Common Enemies, Rachel Kahn Best asks why disease campaigns have dominated a century of American philanthropy and health policy and how the fixation on diseases shapes efforts to improve lives. Combining quantitative and qualitative analyses in an unprecedented history of disease politics, Best shows that to achieve consensus, disease campaigns tend to neglect stigmatized diseases and avoid controversial goals. But despite their limitations, disease campaigns do not crowd out efforts to solve other problems. Instead, they teach Americans to give and volunteer and build up public health infrastructure, bringing us together to solve problems and improve our lives.