Fall 2009

Philosophy of Psychiatry

Phil 7800 – 74944 – 5004

Monday 1:00 - 4:20

Shatzel 317

Professor Sara Worley

This course will focus on focus on the notion of disorder.   We will start by looking at some of the arguments from the “anti-psychiatry” movement in the 1960’s.  In particular, we will look at the claim that the very notion of mental illness involves a kind of category mistake, and various responses to this claim.  Then we will move on to the more specific question of how, assuming that the bare notion of mental disorder makes sense, one should distinguish between disorder and mere difference.     Should we, for instance, think of the myriad of children diagnosed with ADHD in recent years as disordered, or should we think of them as merely having temperaments which are not well-suited to certain of the demands of modern life (and in particular, the modern classroom)?  

One of the central questions here is whether the notion of disorder is essentially value-laden or whether it’s possible to construct a purely naturalistic,  “biological”, understanding of disorder (and, indeed, whether this distinction between the biological and the social, or between the factual and the value-laden,  even makes sense.)    We will look at various attempts to answer this question.     

In the course of answering these questions, we will need to become acquainted with various models of mental illness, including the medical, the “biopsychosocial”,  the evolutionary (according to which mental disorders are, perhaps exaggerated, adaptations),  and the cognitive.   To help focus the discussion, we will also concentrate on certain disorders (or putative disorders), including depression, schizophrenia, ADHD, and perhaps addiction, so we will read a bit of the empirical literature on these (though nothing too technical).   

Finally, as time permits, we may also venture into certain other issues in the philosophy of psychiatry, depending on the interests of the students in the class.  However,  given that this is not meant to be an Area 1 course,  we will try to stay focused on questions related to epistemology, philosophy of science, and philosophy of mind, rather than ethics or value theory.  (So we will likely not get into questions of, e.g., autonomy,  informed consent, or psychiatric ethics.)  

Course requirements will include weekly response papers, along with a term paper.  In addition, each week one student will be assigned “special responsibility” for leading that week’s discussion. That will mean that the assigned student will be expected to come to class prepared with a couple of topics for discussion, and to open the discussion on those topics.   

Department of Philosophy
305 Shatzel Hall,
Bowling Green State University,
Bowling Green, OH 43403.

Phone: 419-372-2117
Fax: 419-372-8191
Email: mdeluca@bgnet.bgsu.edu