Critical psychiatry

27 Oct 1000 People Speak Out And Have To Wait A Year To Be Heard

Posted at 02:36h in Critical psychiatry, DSM-5, Psychology, Psychology of Becoming, Psychotherapy 2 Comments

This summer I drafted an article for a special issue on diagnostic alternatives of the Journal of Humanistic Psychology. Having learned that it will be at least a year before publication (which is ridiculous), I am making it available here. Feedback welcome! Diagnosis: A Thousand Ordinary People Speak Out Lois Holzman and Elisabeth...

14 Jul Survey on Emotional Distress and Diagnosis Reveals Mistrust of Psychiatric Labeling

Posted at 21:32h in Critical psychiatry, DSM-5, Psychology of Becoming, What's New 0 Comments

I recently completed a draft paper summarizing and discussing the survey results for a special issue of a journal dedicated to the growing movement to develop alternatives to the current diagnostic system in psychiatry and clinical psychology. In my latest blog post appearing on Mad in America, I give a...

28 Mar Psychiatry and Social Therapy

Posted at 15:49h in Critical psychiatry, Interviews, Look and Listen, Social Therapy 0 Comments

Eric Maisel interviewed Hugh Polk, psychiatrist and social therapist, for his The Future of Mental Health series. ...

22 Feb Giving Credit Where Credit Is Due

Posted at 00:34h in Critical psychiatry, I Like This, Politics, What's New 0 Comments

2015 AAAS Scientific Freedom and Responsibility Award Goes to Social Psychologist Jean Maria Arrigo Jean Maria Arrigo, who confronted systematic efforts by the American Psychological Association (APA) to allow and conceal the involvement of psychologists in the torture and abuse of detainees following the September 11 attacks, has been awarded the...

20 Jan What Makes a Difference for People of “Difference”

Posted at 20:21h in Critical psychiatry, Culture, Human Development, Language, Psychology of Becoming, Psychotherapy, Social Therapy, Vygotsky 0 Comments

It’s time to change how we think about and relate to people whose makeup is or appears to be different from the norm. We now think of what’s different—let’s say a biological or neurological difference—as the main source of disability and difficulty, and we focus help and treatment on this....

30 Nov Deconstructing the Mental Disorder Paradigm

Posted at 18:24h in Critical psychiatry, DSM-5, I Like This 0 Comments

A new audio book by friend and colleague Eric Maisel. Print versions coming soon!...

29 Aug Beyond the DSM

Posted at 14:48h in Critical psychiatry, DSM-5, Psychology of Becoming, Psychotherapy, Speaking Engagements 2 Comments

“What we need is more facilities where people can walk in and say 'Hey, I'm feeling really down today. Can I just be here for a while and see what could be a contribution to me and make me feel better?' I think this is true for most people but...

21 Aug What Do 1984, Brave New World and the DSM-5 Have in Common?

Posted at 21:46h in Critical psychiatry, DSM-5, Psychology of Becoming 3 Comments

Thanks to APA symposium (“Beyond the DSM: Current Trends in Devising New Diagnostic Alternatives”) discussant Sarah Kamens for bringing to our attention a chilling essay reviewing the DSM-5. Author Sam Kriss “reviews” the book as if it were a dystopian novel like 1984 and Brave New World. The essay appeared...

09 Jul The Diagnostic Debate

Posted at 16:03h in Community Organizing, Critical psychiatry, DSM-5, Psychology of Becoming, Speaking Engagements 0 Comments

I haven’t attended the American Psychological Association convention in about ten years. But I couldn’t turn down an invitation to speak on a symposium on alternatives to diagnosis. And so, I’ll be traveling to Toronto in a few weeks for this year’s convention. The session, organized by SUNY New Paltz psychology...

03 Jun What’s the Point of Being Critical?

Posted at 18:57h in Critical psychiatry, DSM-5, Postmodern Marxism, Psychology of Becoming, Publications, Social Therapy, What's New 2 Comments

I just got word that a new book to which I contributed is hot off the presses. It’s titled Critical Psychotherapy, Psychoanalysis and Counselling: Implications for Practice. Editor Del Loewenthal, Professor of Counselling and Psychotherapy at the University of Roehampton in the UK, has done an impressive job of bringing...