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magzanilla's review against another edition
reflective
3.0
It had some enlightening examples of western psychiatry assuming mental health would be the same worldwide and imposing their analysis+assumptions onto other cultures of what is "right" + "possible" + "healthy thus good", and the dire consequences of that (like psychiatry being used for modern colonialism). Especially, of the 1980s to early 2000s.
And it can be a good introduction into the topic of psychiatric criticism through the perspective of cultural sociology and psych. Especially, for confronting biases in the western bio-medical psychiatric model and its modern successors. As often, nuanced acknowledgements of past and present psychiatry-as-a-tool-of-control is lacking in mainstream discussions.
However, the author's model of cultural mental illness theories and social-pool-of-symptoms, while worth considering - especially as a jumping off point in the Mad Sciences; can be misused very easily to dismiss identities and mental health experiences, despite the "intent" being the exact opposite. As well as failing to acknowledge other aspects in cultural pressure beyond whats obvious to him.
Ethan Watters as an author and psychiatrist, later on has shown to have regressive ideas on different topics.
Such as with Dissociative disorders and abuse victims. Partly due to the cultural phenomenons of The Recovered Memory Movement after the Satanic Panic. But going to another extreme in response to "mass hysteria" as he calls it, is a failure of an analysis.
And this context beyond this particular book itself, alongside the book failing to go deeper on its analysis - heavily docks our impression of it when it comes to the logical conclusion of these models and beliefs if not considered critically.
And it can be a good introduction into the topic of psychiatric criticism through the perspective of cultural sociology and psych. Especially, for confronting biases in the western bio-medical psychiatric model and its modern successors. As often, nuanced acknowledgements of past and present psychiatry-as-a-tool-of-control is lacking in mainstream discussions.
However, the author's model of cultural mental illness theories and social-pool-of-symptoms, while worth considering - especially as a jumping off point in the Mad Sciences; can be misused very easily to dismiss identities and mental health experiences, despite the "intent" being the exact opposite. As well as failing to acknowledge other aspects in cultural pressure beyond whats obvious to him.
Ethan Watters as an author and psychiatrist, later on has shown to have regressive ideas on different topics.
Such as with Dissociative disorders and abuse victims. Partly due to the cultural phenomenons of The Recovered Memory Movement after the Satanic Panic. But going to another extreme in response to "mass hysteria" as he calls it, is a failure of an analysis.
And this context beyond this particular book itself, alongside the book failing to go deeper on its analysis - heavily docks our impression of it when it comes to the logical conclusion of these models and beliefs if not considered critically.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Ableism, Colonisation, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Death, and Physical abuse
Minor: Suicide
elibrary's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
medium-paced
4.5
Very interesting look at the need for diversifying our understanding of psychology!
skylagreyy's review against another edition
4.0
second book ive read only at my bartending job. getting paid to educate myself :D anyways this was very good and informative, definitely agree with the points watters makes about using the same definitions for different cultural diagnoses. book did get a bit repetitive, but again that was the point!
alicia03n09's review
challenging
informative
reflective
medium-paced
3.25
Although the discussion of some disorders and cases lacks nuance, particularly in the eating disorder chapter, I found this book very interesting and eye-opening to the various ways in which the West influences mental health experiences and treatments all over the world. I particularly appreciated the distinction between the hyper-introspection and hyper-individualism vs. the conceptualisations of the mind in terms of religious, cultural, ecological and social levels.
margyly's review against another edition
5.0
Not only does America export a crazy-making culture, we infect other cultures with our mental health diagnoses so as to create mental illnesses in cultures that didn’t have them. Fascinating and sad. Our daughter is in Brazil studying attitudes toward mental illness and treatments among Candomblé practitioners in the Northeast of Brazil. Is she part of the problem or of the solution?
ammmiiiii's review against another edition
2.0
A very interesting theory/concept, however explored in a rather shallow way and anecdotal manner by the author. Although included at the end of the book, lack of in-text references makes doing further reading difficult. Watters writes in a very biased, binary way, and, up until the very last page, entirely ignores the promising advances made by and countless lives saved by modern psychiatry.
liberrydude's review against another edition
3.0
Pretty interesting take on more American imperialism-selling our knowledge overseas and insisting our experience is the only answer. We visit Hong Kong, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, and Japan each with unique maladies in which Western learning has had marginal or even harmful effects. The last chapter on Japan was too long. The author is even married to a psychologist or psychiatrist but this book is really in the domain of anthropology and it's quite fascinating. Western mental health sounds like the Western Diet, not for everyone.