Mental Illness

Joan Busfield is Professor of Sociology at the University of Essex.

"Accessible yet rich, and consequently as valuable as, if not superior to, the similar texts that have preceded it. It will be of use to both groups of readers, those who are familiar with the material covered in it and those who are not, and is thus well-suited to the needs of a diverse professional audience."Journal of Mental Health"The relabelling of human distress and eccentricity as mental disorder is one of the great social changes of our time. Joan Busfield provides a breathtakingly lucid and remarkably comprehensive analysis of the vast cross-disciplinary terrain of argument about mental disorder and the meaning of the enormous expansion in disorder diagnoses over the past half-century. Busfield brings not only her sociologist's accomplished eye but also her trained clinician's understanding and a deft wielding of conceptual distinctions to the multifaceted debates over the meaning and social impact of mental disorder."Jerome C. Wakefield, Professor of Social Work and Psychiatry, New York University "Busfield has managed to capture in a single volume the breadth and depth of the highly contested and complex concept of mental illness. Original, accessible and engaging, this important book is a must-read."Kathleen Kendall, Senior Lecturer in Medical Education, University of Southampton"Busfield's book provides a valuable overview of the contested nature of mental illness, offering a balanced critique of some of the key debates regarding psychiatric concepts and categories. She cautions against the extension of psychiatric boundaries to include those experiences that are more helpfully understood in their social context, emphasising the contribution of many complex factors to the classification of mental illness. Her book deserves to be read by anyone interested in mental health and illness, including professionals and students."Kate Karban, Senior Lecturer in Social Work, University of Bradford

• List of Figures and Tables Introduction1 Concepts and Classifications2 Counting Cases3 Contested Causes4 Critiques5 Conceptual Controversies6 Care, Control and CostsConclusionReferences