Senility before Alzheimer : old Age in British psychiatry, c. 1835-1912
This thesis addresses the place of old age in British psychiatry, from 1835-1912. It asks: how were mental disorders in old age understood, categorised and responded to? It seeks answers to these questions in three sets of sources: theoretical published works written by professional psychiatrists, the official reports of the bodies charged with managing the asylum at a national and local level, and in the patient records of Hanwell County Lunatic Asylum. It argues that the âsenileâ became more clearly defined in the latter nineteenth century, in politics and in medicine, as a residual category of person: too insane for the workhouse, too old for the asylum. It shows that, during this period, older people in the asylum were increasingly likely to be viewed as âoldâ. Through the increasing focus on internal pathology as an aetiological determinant of mental disorder, both engendered and reflected in changes to the asylumâs patient records, the inherent agedness of older people â with associations of inevitable decline, incurability and dependency â became central to the way that psychiatrists interpreted their mental disorders. The senile were a controversial group in nineteenth-century psychiatry.
Andrews, Emily Stella
DA Great Britain ; HN Social history and conditions. Social problems. Social reform ; RC Internal medicine
Senility before Alzheimer : old Age in British psychiatry, c. 1835-1912. This thesis addresses the place of old age in British psychiatry, from 1835-1912. It asks: how were mental disorders in old age understood, categorised and responded to? It seeks answers to these questions in three sets of sources: theoretical published works written by professional psychiatrists, the official reports of the bodies charged with managing the asylum at a national and local level, and in the patient records of Hanwell County Lunatic Asylum. It argues that the âsenileâ became more clearly defined in the latter nineteenth century, in politics and in medicine, as a residual category of person: too insane for the workhouse, too old for the asylum. It shows that, during this period, older people in the asylum were increasingly likely to be viewed as âoldâ. Through the increasing focus on internal pathology as an aetiological determinant of mental disorder, both engendered and reflected in changes to the asylumâs patient records, the inherent agedness of older people â with associations of inevitable decline, incurability and dependency â became central to the way that psychiatrists interpreted their mental disorders. The senile were a controversial group in nineteenth-century psychiatry.
old_age british psychiatry address place old_age british psychiatry asks mental disorder old_age understood categorise respond seek_answer question set source theoretical publish_work write professional psychiatrist official report body charge manage asylum national_local level patient record county asylum argue become clearly_define latter politics medicine residual category person insane workhouse old asylum show period old people asylum increasingly likely view old increase focus internal pathology determinant mental disorder engender reflect_change asylum patient record inherent old people association inevitable decline dependency become_central way psychiatrist interpret mental disorder controversial group nineteenth_century psychiatry