Mindless psychiatry and dubious ethics

Psychiatry all around the world is seen as a specialized branch of medicine. Mental disorders are seen in organic terms and are treated like any other forms of physical disease--with drugs and other forms of organic interventions. This paper argues that the medical model, despite its popularity and continued usage is, to a large extent, unreliable and invalid. Although the present model of psychiatry is in need of an urgent 'paradigm shift', it still continues to exercise immense power and popularity over other approaches to mental illness. The reasons for its popularity and power are analysed and interpreted in historical, scientific, social, economic, and socio-political terms. The practice of psychiatry raises a variety of deep-rooted conceptual and applied issues, particularly those related to the definition and diagnoses of mental illness, treatment procedures, and the ethical practices within psychiatry. It is argued that the need to pathologise every form of mental aberration will be counter-productive in the future. Should this trend remain unchecked it will eventually stifle all forms of scientific, literary, and artistic development.     

The counselling interview: First impressions

This paper examines the nature of a counselling interview. It concerns itself with the first interview between the counsellor and the client, when both, the client and the counsellor are attempting to form their first impressions of one another. The paper discusses three major problems that arise in the process of forming impressions, viz., 1) maintaining neutrality and objectivity, 2) exercising cognitive control, and 3) expressing empathy. It is the contention of this paper that the above problems have not been clearly understood from their historical, philosophical, and psychological perspectives, and as a result, they have not been satisfactorily resolved. As a result, they have not been given sufficient consideration by counsellors and psychotherapists. The article considers the three problems and discusses ways and means by which they can be clearly understood and hopefully 'taken on board' by professionals working in the area.