Mental illness in the workplace – psychological disability management

Abstract

Reviews the book, Mental Illness in the Workplace – Psychological Disability Management by Henry G. Harder, Shannon L. Wagner, Joshua A. Rash (see record 2014-37424-000). This book remains a very practical and informative textbook that employers and human resources managers will find both pragmatically helpful and detailed. Its relevance in contemporary context will be limited, however, by the fact that it endeavors so systematically not to tackle the current paradigm shift towards a social model view of disability. One of the criticisms that can be aimed at the textbook, despite its thoroughness on the topic, is the fact that it sees mental illness as distinct from disability. This is not entirely surprising, as the question of whether mental health issues have a place within the disability field remains a matter rife for debate even amongst academics. The other shortcoming of this textbook is the one-dimensional nature of its perspective. The authors are social workers and behavioral psychologists. Richness and depth in commentary might have been gained by including in the text other voices such as disability advocates, disability studies theorists, as well as the ethnographic voice of employees and employers. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved)