Political Abuse of Psychiatry

Abstract

(from the chapter) The definition of political abuse of psychiatry is not simple. What is usually meant by those terms is that an intervention (e.g. coercion, forced admission to a psychiatric institution, medically not indicated application of psychopharmacological medications) designed for use in dealing with persons suffering from a mental disorder is used on persons who are not mentally ill--and that this is done because the government has wanted it to be done. Psychiatrists usually participate in the process: but it is also possible to imagine the use of psychiatric means without psychiatrists (e.g. use sedatives for the extraction of information by the some governments' secret services). This chapter offers an overview of various forms of political abuse in psychiatry by governments and those who run governmental mental facilities. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)