"Review of Pure types are rare": Comment on book review.

My book Pure types are rare: Myths and meanings of madness (see record 2007-08930-001) may have piqued some members of the mental health community; thus I was not entirely surprised by the caustic review that appeared in the January 1985 issue of Canadian Psychology, nor do I wish to engage the polemics or the personal asides therein. I am impelled, however, to respond to the allegation of "repeated failure of professional scholarship." The reviewer provides three substantive examples. In the first, he objects to the citation following my statement that post-mortem studies have failed to find neurological correlates of senile dementia, and implies that the study cited did find such correlates. Actually, the study was inadequate for the question inasmuch as statistics were not presented for senile dementia exclusive of other conditions, and normal controls were not used. The second maintains that I underestimated the significance of a concordance rate of 53% for the diagnosis of schizophrenia between two psychiatrists examining the same patient, and says it should actually be "somewhere beyond even the .00000001 level." My point, however, was that in vivo, where more than 50% of mental patients are diagnosed schizophrenic, a 53% concordance rate represents chance. Third, Professor Burd relates several sentences of mine to make it appear that I questioned the validity of the co-twin data on genetic factors in schizophrenia on the "curious grounds" that similar data have been obtained for a variety of behavioural and personality traits. I will comment on the statement "There are but a dozen references to articles in established professional journals." I did not attempt to deduce the criteria for "established," nor did I count journals, but I did ascertain that there were 112 citations in the text, comprising 80 separate sources. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reply to Silverman.

Replies to comments by L. H. Silverman (see record 1982-21579-001) on the author's (see record 1980-32531-001) earlier criticism of and failure to replicate Silverman's subliminal symbiotic stimulation as an adjunct to systematic desensitization. The role of individual differences and the implications for a failure to replicate effects of subliminal psychodynamic activation in light of other supportive evidence are discussed. Silverman contends that the results of a particular kind of study using subliminal psychodynamic activation cannot properly be generalized to all studies using this method; the author proposes an alternative view. (5 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sex differences in health and illness.

The literature on sex differences in illness and disease was examined. Although some biologic sex differences are thought to exist, the overlap between the sexes precluded separation of the sexes for treatment or control of problem conditions. Statistics Canada data on mental illness among males and females in Canada were also examined, and deficiencies in available information were discussed. Most notably lacking were statistics on the use of outpatient mental health services. A number of recommendations were made regarding the collection of Canadian mental health statistics. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Symposium on relationships between religion and mental health: Introductory remarks.

"We are witnessing a conspicuous change in the climate between religion and science in recent years." In psychology this has been evidenced in seminars on religion and psychiatry, work shops on pastoral care and psychotherapy, grants to universities for developing mental health curricula for theological students, creation of an Academy of Religion and Mental Health, and the establishing of an APA committee to study relationships between religion and mental health. "The hitherto existing chasm between religion and psychology is somewhat unusual because… both concern themselves with human nature and behavior." This symposium spotlights: expanding links between psychology and religion, religious experience and psychological conflict, the nature of religious controls, and moral issues in psychotherapy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Challenging the therapeutic state: Critical perspectives on psychiatry and the mental health system.

Reviews the special issue of The Journal of Mind and Behavior, Challenging the therapeutic state: Critical perspectives on psychiatry and the mental health system, edited by D. Cohen (1990). This special issue serves as an update on the critique of the medical model in psychiatry. In editing this volume, Cohen has assembled a collection of work from authors in many disciplines—including some laypersons—who are concerned with what they see as the frightening power of the "Therapeutic State." While the work of Thomas Szasz is a guiding light for several of these authors, they certainly are not all associated with his work. In fact, some of them explicitly disavow what they see as Szasz's overly simple stance toward madness. Moreover, the ideas in this volume expand the critique of the medical model far beyond the range of Szasz's work. Disagreements among authors are for the most part confined to a few footnotes in this volume. The book's purpose is to expose the problem before exploring solutions to it. When the volume is at its best, the papers are united by their contention that the medical model in psychiatry is disastrous both for individuals who are victimized by its institutions and practices, and for the society that embraces its disempowering philosophy. There is little, if any, brand new material in this book. Virtually all of the articles contain research and ideas tat the authors have already published elsewhere. The virtue of the book is in bringing together a diversity of work across disciplines that would not ordinarily appear between the same two covers. The common element running through all of these articles is one that the authors almost never state in so many words, but it gives a cumulative force to their very different treatments of psychiatry's problems. Each of these papers, in its own way, reveals aspects of the irrationality implicit in psychiatric orthodoxy. Psychiatry stands at the fringe of medical science, and the fringe of any science is where the inadequacies of its paradigm are most obvious. The attempt to make the medical model fit the problem of madness has not succeeded, but orthodox psychiatry continues to pursue it. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Unwanted Pregnancies: Reply.

Responds to the comment by John J. Sigal (see record 2004-14611-009) about the article by David, Dytrych, and Matejcek (see record 2003-03645-009) which showed the long-term negative psychological effects of unwantedness, up to 35 years after birth. The authors state that they were pleased to note Sigal's observation that the conclusions from their Prague study are consistent with findings reported by him and other colleagues on negative psychological effects of unwanted births. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Validity of transgenerational effects of the holocaust: Reply to Silverman.

The general and specific issues raised in Silverman's (1987) critique of Nadler, Kav-Venaki, and Gleitman's (1985) study of descendents of holocaust survivors are discussed. In addition, the present article addresses the alternative interpretation offered by Silverman and concludes with a discussion of issues of general concern in this research context. (9 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reply to Green and Deutsch.

Replies to an article by Green (see record 1986-26216-001) and Deutsch (see record 1986-26175-001). The current authors state that "There is no question about the value of being able to investigate the relative contribution of objective events and subjective appraisal of the events to health outcomes." They praise the work done by Green and Deutsch and hopes that their work will help others work through some important problems of theory and method like it helped them. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Using a multicultural lens to understand illnesses among Haitians living in America.

Currently, ethnic and racial minority individuals represent a large proportion of the U.S. population, and researchers expect that they will represent the majority of the population by 2050. This shift in U.S. demographics calls for a greater awareness and integration of cultural issues into the assessment and treatment of ethnically and linguistically diverse clients. This article examines the unique beliefs and manifestations of illnesses among Haitians in connection with the American Psychological Association's (APA, 2002) Multicultural Guidelines. The authors use a common culture-bound syndrome, Séizisman, to illustrate the cultural beliefs, assessment, and treatment of illnesses among Haitians. In so doing, they demonstrate how to incorporate the APA Multicultural Guidelines into treatment with clients of diverse cultural and racial backgrounds. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Foreword.

The purpose of this special issue was to collect data and to bring to the attention of the psychological community the need for well-integrated high-impact psychological science and services in the overall health system. The reader will note by scanning titles of the various articles that this special issue is not a systematic review of literature. However, the articles contain valuable insights about the current state of the art on how psychotherapy interfaces with the general health system and the mental health system in particular. It must be noted that psychotherapy is a broad gauge concept involving a variety of applications and interventions which promote better health. It is evident from the contents herein that there is an evolution in the health care field regarding the incorporation of psychotherapy. That is, psychotherapy is becoming more a technique targeted toward specific problems or specific populations and subject to detachment from its scientific base. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Mad travelers: Reflections on the reality of transient mental illness.

Reviews the book, Mad travelers: Reflections on the reality of transient mental illness by Ian Hacking (see record 1998-08112-000). The American Psychiatric Association produced its first Diagnostic and Statistic Manual (DSM) in 1952. It took 16 years to make the revisions that were published as DSM II, 12 years to produce DSM-III, 7 to produce DSM-III Revised, and a mere 7 more to create DSM-IV. It appears that the official accounts of mental, emotional, and behavioural problems change over the years. Moreover, some disorders change so drastically that they can assume epidemic proportions in one situation, while virtually non-existent in another. Such disorders are the focus of Hacking's book. The book is based on talks he gave in the Page-Barbour lecture series at the University of Virginia in 1997. Hacking's purpose is to explore what he calls "transient mental illnesses," those that seem to be confined to a particular time and place—an ecological niche that permits and even nourishes them. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reply to Cyr and Haley.

Responds to comments by Cyr and Haley, on the authors' original record entitled, "Extraneous factors in institutionalization for mental retardation: Demographic analyses for Ontario" (Canadian Journal of Community Mental Health, 1982, 1, 107-113). Silverman and Saunders discuss the effects of residence changes on readmissions to mental retardation institutions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Silverman replies to Lasser.

Lasser's (see record 1990-58318-001) concern about the ethics of conducting research in which psychopathology is intensified is fully justified and one that I have spent considerable time reflecting on. There were two relevant references (Footnotes 9 and 14) in the Silverman (1976) article, but to do justice to the ethical issues would have required a lengthy discussion that was not in place in that article. The explicit purpose of the Rubin and Mitchell (1976) article, to which Lasser alludes, was the unintended effects of research procedures on human subjects, while the purpose of the Silverman (1976) article was very different. To set the record straight, as far as our own research is concerned, the following points can be made, each of which has been elaborated on in the past and are now discussed collectively in a single document (Silverman, Note 1): (a) Informed consent is regularly obtained, (b) Pathology intensification brought about by subliminal psychodynamic activation is slight and, with but rare exceptions, very fleeting. Note that pathology-intensifying stimuli are presented only in a single session. It is only pathology-reducing stimuli, which are given for therapeutic purposes, that are presented over a period of time, (c) Extensive debriefings are regularly carried out at the end of each experiment, one part of which involves revealing the content of stimuli to the subjects. This, we have found, further lessens the possibility of any lingering negative effects, (d) In the rare instances where there are indications that there may be such effects, clinical interviews are conducted and further appropriate action taken, if necessary. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Building a world-class mental health care system for America.

This article examines our current mental health care system, and what can be done to expand this current system. It focuses on the mental health needs of our children, and makes some suggestions to improve their care. Some things discussed are putting more mental health professionals in schools, affordable and convenient treatment options for parents, and flexible treatment arrangements. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The masquerade of mental health reform: Comment on Bagby, Silverman, Ryan, and Dickens (1987).

In a valuable paper, Bagby, Silverman, Ryan, and Dickens (see record 1987-32403-001) analyzed rates of involuntary admissions to Ontario psychiatric facilities for several years before and after Ontario's civil commitment law was changed in November, 1978. Bagby et al.'s paper is timely and important because it is relevant to North America generally, as yet another instance of disparity between change in the semantic formulation of the law and the subsequent behaviour of the psychiatric establishment. It still remains entirely a separate ethical question as to what extent commitment criteria, if the notion is meaningful and enforceable at all, should in fact be as restrictive as Ontario appeared to have intended a decade ago. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Understanding biological psychiatry.

Reviews the book, Understanding biological psychiatry by Robert J. Hedaya (see record 1996-97828-000). This book is designed to bridge the gap between most psychotherapists and the topic of psychotropic medication. The clearly stated intention of Hedaya's book is to provide non-physician mental health practitioners with an adequate understanding of biologic mechanisms in the major mental disorders, sufficient for them to make informed decisions about whom to refer, when to refer, and how to evaluate outcomes. On the whole, the reviewer thinks Hedaya's book succeeds mightily. His contact with the basic literature surrounding the various disorders, including OCD, the impulse disorders, substance use difficulties, and attentional problems, all mark this as a sophisticated text that is broadly applicable for psychotherapists. This is true virtually regardless of the domain of human difficulties with which readers regularly work. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gerald Caplan (1917–2008).

Presents an obituary for Gerald Caplan who was a world leader in the areas of preventive psychiatry; adult, child, and family psychiatry; and community mental health. His contributions to prevention, crisis intervention, mental health consultation, and social support are monumental and unprecedented. Briefly described is Caplan's life history, educational background, and scholarly accomplishments. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of Mental health law in Canada.

Reviews the book, Mental health law in Canada by Harvey Savage and Carla McKague (1987). Mental health professionals who come into contact with the law in the course of their work generally have an interest in the well-being of the client. However, they often feel dismayed and confused because of their lack of understanding of mental law and the legal system in general. Until recently, mental health professionals in Canada could not turn to a single volume which would help explain mental health law, including their clients' rights. However, Harvey Savage and Carla McKague's book, Mental health law in Canada, will help alleviate some of the concern and confusion Canadian mental health professionals have come to know. Although some authors have written about Canadian mental health law in specific contexts (e.g., criminal responsibility or fitness to stand trial), Savage and McKague's contribution is the only available comprehensive source directed to the law affecting psychiatric patients. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)