Larry Davidson

This book shows us how rather than abandoning psychology once he liberated phenomenology from the psychologism of the philosophy of arithmetic, Edmund Husserl remained concerned with the ways in which phenomenology held important implications for a radical reform of psychology throughout his intellectual career. The author fleshes out what such a radical reform actually entails, and proposes that it can only be accomplished by following the trail of the transcendental reduction described in Husserl’s later works. In order to appreciate the need for the transcendental even for psychology, the book tracks Husserl’s thinking on the nature of this relationship between phenomenology as a philosophy and psychology as a positive science as it evolved over time. The text covers Husserl’s definition of phenomenology as “descriptive psychology” in the Logical Investigations, rejecting the hybrid form of “phenomenological psychology” described in the lectures by that name, and endswith his proposal for a “fundamental refashioning” of psychology by situating it within the transcendental framework of The Crisis of European Sciences and Transcendental Phenomenology. The Author argues for a re-grounding of psychology by virtue of a “return to positivity” after having performed the reduction to transcendental intersubjectivity. What results is a phenomenological approach to a transcendentally-grounded psychology which, while having returned to the life-world, no longer remains transcendentally naïve. A phenomenologically-grounded psychology thus empowers researchers, clinicians, and clients alike to engage in social actions that move the world closer to achieving social justice for all. This text appeals to students and researchers working in phenomenology and psychology.

This book shows us how rather than abandoning psychology once he liberated phenomenology from the psychologism of the philosophy of arithmetic, Edmund Husserl remained concerned with the ways in which phenomenology held important implications for a radical reform of psychology throughout his intellectual career. The author fleshes out what such a radical reform actually entails, and proposes that it can only be accomplished by following the trail of the transcendental reduction described in Husserl’s later works. In order to appreciate the need for the transcendental even for psychology, the book tracks Husserl’s thinking on the nature of this relationship between phenomenology as a philosophy and psychology as a positive science as it evolved over time. The text covers Husserl’s definition of phenomenology as “descriptive psychology” in the Logical Investigations, rejecting the hybrid form of “phenomenological psychology” described in the lectures by that name, and endswith his proposal for a “fundamental refashioning” of psychology by situating it within the transcendental framework of The Crisis of European Sciences and Transcendental Phenomenology. The Author argues for a re-grounding of psychology by virtue of a “return to positivity” after having performed the reduction to transcendental intersubjectivity. What results is a phenomenological approach to a transcendentally-grounded psychology which, while having returned to the life-world, no longer remains transcendentally naïve. A phenomenologically-grounded psychology thus empowers researchers, clinicians, and clients alike to engage in social actions that move the world closer to achieving social justice for all. This text appeals to students and researchers working in phenomenology and psychology.

When Claire Bien first began hearing voices, they were infrequent, benign and seemingly just curious about her life and the world around her. But the more attention Claire paid, the more frequently they began to speak, and the darker their intentions became... Despite escalating paranoia, an initial diagnosis of Schizophreniform Disorder and taking medication with debilitating side effects, Claire learned to face her demons and manage her condition without the need for long-term medication. In this gripping memoir, Claire recounts with eloquence her most troubled times. She explains how she managed to regain control over her mind and her life even while intermittently hearing voices, through self-guided and professional therapy and with the support of family and friends. Challenging a purely medical understanding of hearing voices, Claire advocates for an end to the stigma of those who experience auditory verbal hallucinations, and a change of thinking from the professionals who treat the condition.

Partnering for Recovery in Mental Health is a practical guide for conducting person and family-centered recovery planning with individuals with serious mental illnesses and their families. It is derived from the authors’ extensive experience in articulating and implementing recovery-oriented practice and has been tested with roughly 3,000 providers who work in the field as well as with numerous post-graduate trainees in psychology, social work, nursing, and psychiatric rehabilitation. It has consistently received highly favorable evaluations from health care professionals as well as people in recovery from mental illness. This guide represents a new clinical approach to the planning and delivery of mental health care. It emerges from the mental health recovery movement, and has been developed in the process of the efforts to transform systems of care at the local, regional, and national levels to a recovery orientation. It will be an extremely useful tool for planning care within the context of current health care reform efforts and increasingly useful in the future, as systems of care become more person-centered. Consistent with other patient-centered care planning approaches, this book adapts this process specifically to meet the needs of persons with serious mental illnesses and their families. Partnering for Recovery in Mental Health is an invaluable guide for any person involved directly or indirectly in the provision, monitoring, evaluation, or use of community-based mental health care.

As the global psychiatric community enters a new era of transformation, this book explores lessons learned from previous efforts with the goal of “getting it right” this time. In response to the common refrain that we know about and ‘do’ recovery already, the authors set the recovery movement within the conceptual framework of major thinkers and achievers in the history of psychiatry, such as Philippe Pinel, Dorothea Dix, Adolf Meyer, Harry Stack Sullivan, and Franco Basaglia. The book reaches beyond the usual boundaries of psychiatry to incorporate lessons from related fields, such as psychology, sociology, social welfare, philosophy, political economic theory, and civil rights. From Jane Addams and the Settlement House movement to Martin Luther King, Jr., and Gilles Deleuze, this book identifies the less well-known and less visible dimensions of the recovery concept and movement that underlie concrete clinical practice. In addition, the authors highlight the limitations of previous efforts to reform and transform mental health practice, such as the de-institutionalization movement begun in the 1950s, in the hope that the field will not have to repeat these same mistakes. Their thoughtful analysis and valuable advice will benefit people in recovery, their loved ones, the practitioners who serve them, and society at large. Foreword by Fred Frese, Founder of the Community and State Hospital Section of the American Psychological Association and past president of the National Mental Health Consumers' Association

This book takes a lofty vision of "recovery" and of "a life in the community" for every adult with a serious mental illness promised by the U. S. President's 2003 New Freedom Commission on Mental Health and shows the reader what is entailed in making this vision a reality. Beginning with the historical context of the recovery movement and its recent emergence on the center stage of mental health policy around the world, the authors then clarify various definitions of mental health recovery and address the most common misconceptiosn of recovery held by skeptical practitioners and wroried families. With this framework in place, the authors suggest fundamental principles for recovery-oreinted care, a set of concrete practice guidelines developed in and for the field, a recovery guide model of practice as an alternative to clinical case management, and tools to self-assess the recovery orientation of practices and practitioners. In doing so, this volume represents the first book to go beyond the rhetoric of recovery to its implementation in everyday practice. Much of this work was developed with the State of Connecticut's Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services, helping the state to win a #1 ranking in the recent NAMI report card on state mental health authorities. Since initial development of these principles, guidelines, and tools in Connecticut, the authors have become increasingly involved in refining and tailoring this approach for other systems of care around the globe as more and more governments, ministry leaders, system managers, practitioners, and people with serious mental illnesses nad their families embrace the need to transform mental health services to promote recovery and community inclusion. If you've wondered what all of the recent to-do has been about with the notion of "recovery" in mental health, this book explains it. In addition, it gives you an insider's view of the challenges and strategies involved in transforming to recovery and a road map to follow on the first few steps down this exciting, promising, and perhaps long overdue path.

An essential volume for improving understanding of the recovery process for people diagnosed with schizophrenia Schizophrenia is widely considered the most severe and disabling of the mental illnesses. Yet recent research has demonstrated that many people afflicted with the disorder are able to recover to a significant degree. Living Outside Mental Illness demonstrates the importance of listening to what people diagnosed with schizophrenia themselves have to say about their struggle, and shows the dramatic effect this approach can have on clinical practice and social policy. It presents an in-depth investigation, based on a phenomenological perspective, of experiences of illness and recovery as illuminated by compelling first-person descriptions. This volume forcefully makes the case for the utility of qualitative methods in improving our understanding of the reasons for the success or failure of mental health services. The research has important clinical and policy implications, and will be of key interest to those in psychology and the helping professions as well as to people in recovery and their families.

An essential volume for improving understanding of the recovery process for people diagnosed with schizophrenia Schizophrenia is widely considered the most severe and disabling of the mental illnesses. Yet recent research has demonstrated that many people afflicted with the disorder are able to recover to a significant degree. Living Outside Mental Illness demonstrates the importance of listening to what people diagnosed with schizophrenia themselves have to say about their struggle, and shows the dramatic effect this approach can have on clinical practice and social policy. It presents an in-depth investigation, based on a phenomenological perspective, of experiences of illness and recovery as illuminated by compelling first-person descriptions. This volume forcefully makes the case for the utility of qualitative methods in improving our understanding of the reasons for the success or failure of mental health services. The research has important clinical and policy implications, and will be of key interest to those in psychology and the helping professions as well as to people in recovery and their families.