Introduction: histories of asylums, insanity and psychiatry in Scotland

Philo, C. and Andrews, J. (2017) Introduction: histories of asylums, insanity and psychiatry in Scotland. History of Psychiatry, 28(1), pp. 3-14. (doi: 10.1177/0957154X16678566) (PMID:27956649) (PMCID:PMC5302068)

Abstract

This paper introduces a special issue on ‘Histories of madness, asylums and psychiatry in Scotland’, situating the papers that follow in an outline historiography of work in this field. Using Allan Beveridge’s claims in 1993 about the relative lack of research on the history of psychiatry in Scotland, the paper reviews a range of contributions that have emerged since then, loosely distinguishing between ‘overviews’ – work addressing longer-term trends and broader periods and systems – and inquiries that get in deep with particular ‘individuals and institutions’. There remains much still to do, but the present special issue signals what is currently being achieved, not least by a new generation of scholars in and on Scotland.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Philo, Professor Christopher
• Authors: Philo, C., and Andrews, J.
• College/School: College of Science and Engineering > School of Geographical and Earth Sciences
• Journal Name: History of Psychiatry
• Publisher: SAGE
• ISSN: 0957-154X
• ISSN (Online): 1740-2360
• Published Online: 12 December 2016
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2016 The Authors
• First Published: First published in History of Psychiatry 28(1):3-14
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons License