Alternatives to the medical model Flashcards
What does Szasz mean by ‘there is no such thing as mental illness’
–> all done by self report
–> bodily illnesses are wrongly diagnosed as mental illnesses
–> mental illness is a way of other people judging other people about having bad ways of behaving
–> it’s a medical / political construct
What does Szasz mean by ‘ the medicalisation of disturbing or disturbed behaviours’
–> movement away from personal suffering seen as attended to by themselves or needs gods help
–> movement towards other people seeing behaviour as disturbed or disturbing that needs medical treatment
–> began to be seen as needed to be treated the same way as physical diseases
–> mental patients were seen as ‘passive victims of pathophysiological processes outside their control’ rather than as ‘active players in real life dramas’
What does Szasz mean by ‘mental illness is a myth’
–> seen as a ‘linguistic-rhetorical phenomenon’
–> if mental illness has a biological basis then it was never a mental illness but was an diagnosed bodily illness
–> our modern ‘pseudomedical’ perspective on the tragic nature of life
–> if mental illness we have a specific view of behaviours that leads to the person being treated against their will
What does Szasz mean ‘psychiatrist is like a jailer’
–> the patient has no choice
–> power to diagnose/ section
What does Szasz mean ‘mental illness has been politicised’
–> profit of medication
–> government more in control of others than ever
