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The psychiatric profession and the Australian government: the debate over collective depression syndrome among asylum-seeking detainees

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posted on 2023-05-17, 01:35 authored by William BostockWilliam Bostock
Psychiatrists have long had involvement with the political process, both individually and as a profession. They have made valuable contributions to debate over such issues as war, conflict, terrorism, torture, human rights abuse, drug abuse, suicide and other public health issues. However, they have also been complicit in some gross atrocities. Over several years there has been debate over the Australian Government’s treatment of asylum seekers, and the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists took the unusual step of publicly criticizing the Australian Government’s policy on grounds of its toxicity leading to a diagnosis of collective depression syndrome, particularly among child detainees, but also adult detainees. The official Ministerial response was to deny that collective depression exists and to assert that the concept is meaningless. Can this intervention by psychiatrists be interpreted as a product of earlier political behaviors by psychiatrists? The willingness of psychiatrists to cooperate with other professions, notably psychologists, pediatricians, physicians and lawyers, is noted, as is presence of minority voices within the Australian psychiatric profession. The significance of the debate over the mental condition of asylum-seeking detainees is that its outcome has implications for how Australia sees itself and is seen by the rest of the world, that is, its national identity.

History

Publication title

Psychology Research and Behaviour Management

Pagination

121-127

ISSN

1179-1578

Department/School

School of Social Sciences

Publisher

Dove Medical Press Ltd

Place of publication

United Kingdom

Rights statement

© 2009 Bostock, publisher and licensee Dove Medical Press Ltd. This is an Open Access article which permits unrestricted noncommercial use, provided the original work is properly cited.

Repository Status

  • Open

Socio-economic Objectives

Government and politics not elsewhere classified

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