The purpose of this paper is to discuss a social constructionist point of view about mental health in contrast to the medical model.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to discuss a social constructionist point of view about mental health in contrast to the medical model.
Design/methodology/approach
This is a discussion paper bringing together two systems of thought concerning mental health and its origins.
Findings
It is not clear that there is any substantive evidence to support the medical model of mental illness.
Research limitations/implications
Researchers may be helped to consider a qualitative approach to knowledge rather than the traditional positivist approach.
Practical implications
This paper will help people to think about mental health in a way that is not orthodox.
Social implications
It will bring an understanding that even though mental illness is not an illness in the traditional sense, there is still no blame or shame associated with it.
Originality/value
The author is an active operational senior manager at a user-led community mental health organisation with over 20 years’ experience in the field. The organisation and its services track a social constructionist philosophy.
Details
Keywords
In this paper I will discuss loneliness in the community.
Abstract
Purpose
In this paper I will discuss loneliness in the community.
Design/methodology/approach
Finding a non-medical way to support people who feel lonely is really important. Many will never have considered joining groups of identity like the offer briefly discussed.
Findings
In future community mental health features, the author will consider topics such as community mental health advocacy, debt, benefits and finance, housing and self-help.
Originality/value
In this column, the author briefly considers the concepts of loneliness, social isolation and solitude; review some research; and offer ideas about how help may be given in community settings.
Details
Keywords
Kerry Ferguson and Carol Ireland
The objective of this study was to investigate attitudes towards individuals who commit different types of sex offence, with subsidiary aims of exploring the influence of…
Abstract
The objective of this study was to investigate attitudes towards individuals who commit different types of sex offence, with subsidiary aims of exploring the influence of respondent sex and the influence of personal experience of sexual abuse. The sample comprised 139 participants (49 students and 90 forensic staff). All were provided with a vignette depicting a specific type of sex offence, and asked to complete a scale assessing attitudes towards sex offenders (Hogue, 1993). Forensic staff were more likely than students to view sex offenders in positive terms, viewing them as individuals who could be rehabilitated. Participants who reported being victims of sexual abuse, or that someone close to them had been abused, viewed sex offenders less negatively than non‐victims. Men demonstrated less positive attitudes towards child incest and child indecent assault offenders than to stranger rapists. Women held more positive views towards sex offenders than men, and this was consistent across offence type.
Details
Keywords
The bourgeoisie, wherever it has got the upper hand, has put an end to all feudal, patriarchal, idyllic relations. It has pitilessly torn assunder the motley feudal ties that…
Abstract
The bourgeoisie, wherever it has got the upper hand, has put an end to all feudal, patriarchal, idyllic relations. It has pitilessly torn assunder the motley feudal ties that bound man to his “natural superiors,” and has left remaining no other nexus between man and man than naked self‐interest, than callous “cash payment.” It has drowned the most heavenly ecstasies of religious fervour, of chivalrous enthusiasm, of philistine sentimentalism, in the icy water of egotistical calculation (Marx, 1848: 475).
In 1969, Warren Nutter left the University of Virginia Department of Economics to serve as the Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs in the Nixon…
Abstract
In 1969, Warren Nutter left the University of Virginia Department of Economics to serve as the Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs in the Nixon administration. During his time in the Defense Department, Nutter was deeply involved in laying the groundwork for a military coup against the democratically elected president of Chile, Salvador Allende. Although Nutter left the Pentagon several months before the successful 1973 coup, his role in Chile was far more direct than the better-known cases of Friedrich Hayek, Milton Friedman, James Buchanan, and Arnold Harberger. This chapter describes Nutter’s role in Chile policymaking in the Nixon administration. It shows how Nutter’s criticisms of Henry Kissinger are grounded in his economics, and compares and contrasts Nutter with other economists who have been connected to Pinochet’s dictatorship.
Details
Keywords
Sedigheh Moghavvemi, Lee Su Teng and Huda Mahmoud
This chapter will introduce the concept of the gig economy. It begins with a brief discussion of technological changes and their impact on the workforce and labour market…
Abstract
This chapter will introduce the concept of the gig economy. It begins with a brief discussion of technological changes and their impact on the workforce and labour market, demonstrating how the trend shifts towards the gig economy. It then examines the trends that are influencing this transformation and discusses various perspectives and the attractiveness of the gig economy for workers and businesses. This chapter will also discuss the gig economy, platform economy, digital platform, and gig worker categories. It concludes with a brief discussion of some of the opportunities, issues, and challenges associated with the gig economy.