The Social Organization of Mental Illness

Lindsay Prior is Professor Emeritus of Sociology at Queen’s University, Belfast, and visiting Professor in the School of Public Health. He is the author of Using Documents in Social Research (SAGE, 2003) and editor of the 4-volume Using Documents and Records in Social Research (SAGE, 2011). His most recent journal publications—in, Social Science & Medicine, Critical Public Health, Sociology of Health & Illness, have focused on various aspects of public health practice and policy.

• IntroductionSocial Representations and Social WorldsChanging Images of the Psychiatric HospitalThe Diverse Objects of Psychiatric TheoryNetworks of Professional PracticeRepresentations of Psychiatric Disorder in the CommunityRepresentations of Psychiatric Disorder in the FamilyThe Social Worlds of the HospitalThe Social Worlds of the CommunityEpilogueRepresentations of Mental Illness

`Seeks to construct a distinctive and novel sociological argument around the shift to community care in mental health.... Prior has many fascinating and insightful things to say about the influence of changing professional ideologies on the shift from hospital to community. I think that he shows convincingly how frutiful such analysis is to understanding the "social organisation of psychiatry".... undoubtedly essential reading′ - Medical Sociology News`Lindsay Prior offers a stimulating and fundamentally sociological twist to this literature... The argument is provocative, and offers a fresh vision in a long-standing debate.... Perhaps the most interesting feature of this book is the frame it provides for thinking about the recent community experiences of the deinstitutionalized mentally ill.... This is clearly an important book for sociologists interested in the deinstitutionalization of the mentally ill and the history of psychiatry′ - Contemporary Sociology`The author carefully develops the theme to demonstrate in a coherent text the ways in which social representations of mental illness have been constructed in recent times and what we have done with what we have constructed.... The whole is coherent and well-argued... The topic is an important one and there is a need for much careful thought about our headlong rush into community psychiatry.... This book makes a significant contribution to understanding our new tasks′ - Journal of Mental Health`Prior supports his overarching argument with a meticulous examination of the relevant literature. What might otherwise have been a rather dry text is given context and brought to life through reference to interview and conversational data from the research in which the book originated...I have little doubt that his book will prove valuable to academics in a variety of fields. For sociologists in particular it has three strengths. Firstly, it provides an interesting and highly topical illustration of the insights to be gained from the study of social organization; secondly, it makes an illuminating contribution to the soicology of mental illness itself; and thirdly, the comprehensive literature review which underpins each chapter makes it a useful reference source. Equally, the book provides a resource for academics involved in the education and training of any of the professional groups who work with people suffering from mental disorders′ - Sociology of Mental Illness`Prior offers a comprehensive review of historical and sociological sources and has produced an important work that adds a fresh perspective on the changing social organization of psychiatric illness′ - Choice `Lindsay Prior has produced another lucid and scholarly book... his argument is accessible to all readers with a serious interest in the contemporary transformation of our psychiatric institutions and practices.′ - Michael Bloor, University of Wales, Cardiff`In a rare combination of empirical precision and theoretical brilliance, Prior shows how sociological analysis can shed a fascinating light on the vital practical question of community care in the context of mental illness. This outstanding book is simply essential reading for anybody concerned with these subjects.′ - David Silverman, Goldsmiths College, University of London