A Critical Theory of Medical Discourse: How Patients and Health Professionals Deal with Social Problems

1989 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 577-597 ◽  
Author(s):  
Howard Waitzkin ◽  
Theron Britt
Keyword(s):  
Critical Theory ◽  
Literary Criticism ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Psychological Impact ◽  
Medical Discourse ◽  
Social Conditions ◽  
Underlying Structure ◽  
Conscious Awareness ◽  
Structural Relationships ◽  
Desirable Behavior

Criticism of social context does not generally appear in medical encounters. When contextual issues arise in medical discourse, messages of ideology and social control may become apparent, usually without the conscious awareness of the participants. By easing the physical or psychological impact of contextual difficulties, or by encouraging patients' conformity to mainstream expectations of desirable behavior, encounters with doctors can help win patients' consent to troubling social conditions. Seen in this light, doctor-patient encounters become micropolitical situations that do not typically encourage explicit statements or actions by health professionals to change contextual sources of their patients' difficulties. A critical theory influenced by structuralism suggests that the surface meanings of signs in medical discourse prove less important than their structural relationships. In addition, a theoretical approach adopting elements of post-structuralism and Marxist literary criticism emphasizes the marginal, absent, or excluded elements of medical discourse. Contextual features that shape a text include social class, sex, age, and race. Through the underlying structure of medical discourse, contextual problems are expressed, marginalized, and managed.

Veiled Theory: The Transmutation of Anthropology in T. S. Eliot's Critical Method

Paragraph ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 77-94 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adam Trexler
Keyword(s):  
Critical Theory ◽  
Literary Criticism ◽  
Literary Theory ◽  
Institutional Framework ◽  
Philosophical Investigation ◽  
Institutional History ◽  
Human History ◽  
Critical Practice ◽  
The Absolute ◽  
Historical Moment

While literary criticism is often seen as an unself-reflective forerunner to literary theory, this article argues that T.S. Eliot's theory of critical practice was a philosophically informed methodology of reading designed to create a disciplinary and institutional framework. To reconstruct this theory, it enriches theoretical methodology with intellectual and institutional history. Specifically, the article argues that Eliot's early critical theory depended on the paradigms of anthropology and occultism, developed during his philosophical investigation of anthropology and Leibniz. From this investigation, Eliot created an occult project that used spiritual monads as facts to progress toward the Absolute. The article goes on to argue that Eliot's methodology of reading was shaped by anthropology's and occultism's paradigms of non-academic, non-specialist reading societies that sought a super-historic position in human history through individual progress. The reconstruction of Eliot's intellectual and institutional framework for reading reveals a historical moment with sharp differences and surprising similarities to the present.

Jargon, Bullshit, sinnlos

2021 ◽  
Vol 69 (4) ◽  
pp. 646-660
Author(s):  
Max Beck
Keyword(s):  
Critical Theory ◽  
Logical Empiricism ◽  
Social Conditions ◽  
The Other ◽  
Social Content ◽  
Relevant Today ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
Personal Approach ◽  
The 1960S ◽  
Theological Language

Abstract Theodor W. Adorno’s Jargon of Authenticity (1964) is one of the bestknown, but also most controversial works of Critical Theory. Many philosophers, writers and editorialists have attacked the text in recent decades and accused Adorno of cultivating his own “jargon”. In his book, Adorno develops a critique of metaphysical and theological language, which he observed in Germany from the 1920s up to the 1960s. In my paper, I argue that the mode of critique Adorno deploys is still relevant today, even if its object has largely disappeared. This becomes clear in comparison to the language criticism of the analytical tradition, namely logical empiricism or Harry G. Frankfurt’s critique of “bullshit,” which are comparably more widespread today in academic debates. While Adorno examines linguistic expressions in terms of their social content and places them in a historical constellation, the critique of “bullshit” following Frankfurt remains constrained to a personal approach. In the language criticism of logical empiricism, on the other hand, the possibility of understanding linguistic phenomena as expressions of social conditions is still present. From this comparison, much can be learned for an up-to-date language criticism.

Who is a survivor of suicide loss? A systematic review

2016 ◽  
Vol 33 (S1) ◽  
pp. S601-S601
Author(s):  
S. Gili ◽  
C. Delicato ◽  
A. Feggi ◽  
C. Gramaglia ◽  
P. Zeppegno
Keyword(s):  
Psychological Impact ◽  
Clinical Intervention ◽  
Underlying Structure ◽  
Unexpected Death ◽  
Helping Relationship ◽  
Survivors Of Suicide ◽  
Suicide Bereavement ◽  
Pubmed Search ◽  
Competing Interest ◽  
Survivor Of Suicide

IntroductionDeath by suicide stuns with soul-crushing surprise, leaving family and friends not only grieving the unexpected death, but confused and lost by this haunting loss. The underlying structure of grief for survivors of suicide loss appears complicated.AimsThe purpose of this study consists in reviewing literature data about survivors of suicide, especially exploring the few informations emerged by researches on the role of psychiatrist as “survivor”.MethodsA PubMed search was conducted using combinations of the following keywords: survivors suicide or bereavement suicide or suicide psychiatrists and randomized.The search was conducted through September 10, 2015, and no conference proceedings were included.ResultsBereavement following suicide is complicated by the psychological impact of the act on those close to the victim. It is further complicated by the societal perception that the act of suicide is a failure by the victim and the family to deal with some emotional issue and ultimately society affixes blame for the loss on the survivors. This individual or societal stigma introduces a unique stress on the bereavement process that in some cases requires clinical intervention.ConclusionsSuicide bereavement seems to be different from natural loss. Clinicians may react to a patient's suicide both on a personal and professional level, with emotions such as loss of self-esteem or blame. This grief somehow nullifies the core of a helping relationship and may imply a more conservative management of future patients or even avoiding to accept suicidal patients for treatment. Support interventions have been proposed.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

scholarly journals Metadiscourse as a Way of Achieving Persuasion in Literary Criticism Texts

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 245-263
Author(s):  
Dunya AlJazrawi ◽  
Zeena AlJazrawi
Keyword(s):  
Critical Theory ◽  
Literary Criticism ◽  
Virginia Woolf ◽  
Literary Genre ◽  
Linguistic Features ◽  
Persuasive Essays ◽  
Stanley Fish ◽  
Role Of The Reader

This study aims at examining the use of metadiscourse markers in literary criticism texts to identify the role of the reader and how these markers are used to produce more persuasive essays. The data of 72,727 words from 17 texts were written by three well-known authors, namely, T.S. Eliot, Virginia Woolf and Stanley Fish. Hyland’s (2005) model of interpersonal metadiscourse markers was used to analyze the data. The analysis revealed that metadiscourse markers are used by literary critics to create coherent and persuasive texts. It was found out that the theory of criticism adopted by the literary critics does not affect the use of metadiscourse markers only maybe in terms of relying more on logos, ethos or pathos. The results of this study comply with those of previous research showing that metadiscourse markers are frequently used in literary criticism texts. This study will contribute to both the literary genre and the genre of critical essays by identifying the linguistic features to be used to produce more effective and convincing literary criticism texts. It will also help future critics to write more persuasive texts by highlighting the means that enable them to influence their readers and to produce more coherent and convincing texts. Keywords metadiscourse; persuasion; literary criticism; essays; critical theory

scholarly journals The Psychological Impact of Covid-19 on University Students: Their Expectations of Mental Health Professionals

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 1-20
Author(s):  
M.Siyabend KAYA ◽  
Yavuz KOŞAN
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
University Students ◽  
Mental Health Professionals ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Psychosocial Support ◽  
Qualitative Content Analysis ◽  
Psychological Impact ◽  
Depression And Anxiety ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Main Effects

The current study focused on exploring the psychological impact of the COVID -19 outbreak on university students and participants' expectations of mental health professionals. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 80 university students aged 18 to 33 years from 19 cities in Turkey. Qualitative content analysis was used to identify important aspects of the students' experiences. According to the results, the main effects of the epidemic COVID -19 on the participants were depression and anxiety. We found that participants used various ways to cope with COVID -19 such as reading books and paying attention to hygiene. Participants also indicated that they perceived some positive situations, such as the value of nature and humanity, the importance of family, and various negative situations, such as mental exhaustion. Finally, participants stressed that they had different expectations regarding psychosocial support and the planning of individual activities by mental health professionals

Interpersonal Interaction

2013 ◽  
pp. 41-48
Author(s):  
David R. Cox ◽  
Richard H. Cox ◽  
Bruce Caplan
Keyword(s):  
Health Professionals ◽  
Psychological Impact ◽  
Code Of Conduct ◽  
Interpersonal Interaction ◽  
Interpersonal Interactions ◽  
Treatment Team ◽  
Interpersonal Factors ◽  
Effects Of Stress ◽  
Relationship Boundaries

Chapter 4 discusses how competence in interpersonal interactions mandates awareness of how the RP affects others, and vice versa, and covers the constructs of empathy, respect, dignity, and multicultural factors, as well as recognition of the effects of stress and the importance of maintaining relationship boundaries in interpersonal interactions. It also touches on how not all health professionals share the same code of conduct or understanding of the ways in which interpersonal factors interact with treatment. Lastly it covers how RPs are often in a position to address the psychological impact of differing perceptions of situations, stressors, interactions and other matters among members of a treatment team comprised of a variety of disciplines, and how those differences may affect the course of treatment.

scholarly journals Psychological Impact of the COVID-19 Outbreak on Nurses in China: A Nationwide Survey During the Outbreak

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yan Liu ◽  
Youlin Long ◽  
Yifan Cheng ◽  
Qiong Guo ◽  
Liu Yang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Psychological Impact ◽  
Nationwide Survey ◽  
Living Alone ◽  
Health Issue ◽  
Public Health Issue ◽  
Second Line ◽  
Front Line ◽  
Major Public Health Issue

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic is a major public health issue and challenge to health professionals. In similar epidemics, nurses experienced more distress than other providers.Methods: We surveyed both on-duty nurses caring for infected patients and second-line nurses caring for uninfected patients from Hubei and other provinces throughout China.Results: We received completed surveys from 1,364 nurses from 22 provinces: 658 front-line and 706 second-line nurses. The median (IQR) GHQ-28 score of all nurses was 17 (IQR 11–24). The overall incidence of mild-to-moderate distress (GHQ score > 5) was 28%; that for severe distress (GHQ score > 11) was 6%. The incidence of mild-to-moderate distress in the second-line nurses was higher than that in the front-line nurses (31 vs. 25%; OR, 0.74; 95 CI, 0.58–0.94). Living alone (OR, 0.62; 95% CI, 0.44–0.86) and feeling supported (OR, 0.82, 95% CI, 0.74–0.90) independently predicted lower anxiety.Conclusions: During the COVID-19 pandemic, the psychological problems of all nurses were generally serious. The interviewed second-line nurses face more serious issues than the front-line nurses.

scholarly journals Psychological Impact of NBS for CF

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jane Chudleigh ◽  
Holly Chinnery
Keyword(s):  
Cystic Fibrosis ◽  
Newborn Screening ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
False Positive ◽  
Psychological Impact ◽  
Confirmatory Test ◽  
Test Results ◽  
Burden Of Care ◽  
Positive Results ◽  
Screening Result

Newborn screening for cystic fibrosis has resulted in diagnosis often before symptoms are recognised, leading to benefits including reduced disease severity, decreased burden of care, and lower costs. The psychological impact of this often unsought diagnosis on the parents of seemingly well children is less well understood. The time during which the screening result is communicated to families but before the confirmatory test results are available is recognised as a period of uncertainty and it is this uncertainty that can impact most on parents. Evidence suggests this may be mitigated against by ensuring the time between communication and confirmatory testing is minimized and health professionals involved in communicating positive newborn screening results and diagnostic results for cystic fibrosis to families are knowledgeable and able to provide appropriate reassurance. This is particularly important in the case of false positive results or when the child is given a Cystic Fibrosis Screen Positive, Inconclusive Diagnosis designation. However, to date, there are no formal mechanisms in place to support health professionals undertaking this challenging role, which would enable them to meet the expectations set out in specific guidance.

Northrop Frye and the Problem of Spiritual Authority

PMLA ◽  
1972 ◽  
Vol 87 (5) ◽  
pp. 964-975 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles F. Altieri
Keyword(s):  
Literary Criticism ◽  
Vietnam War ◽  
Jacques Derrida ◽  
Contemporary Problem ◽  
Underlying Structure ◽  
Recent Criticism ◽  
Evolutionary Patterns ◽  
Spiritual Authority ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Northrop Frye

Northrop Frye's recent criticism confronts the contemporary problem raised most powerfully by the Vietnam War—can we find a telos or definition of man on which we can ground our moral reactions and our visions of human development. Frye establishes this telos by an analysis of origins. Contained in a civilization's statements of “concern,” in its imaginative treatments of its own condition, one can find an underlying structure of desire which defines the ends of man. This structure and the recurrent images it produces then can serve as the middle terms people use to justify and value their actions. Frye shares his treatment of mediation with contemporary Hegelians like Sartre, Lukács, and Ricoeur, but grounds his absolute in tradition rather than in ideal absolutes or posited evolutionary patterns. Frye's idea of mediation also provides an ethical model for literary criticism: the critic tries to combine literature as product and as cultural possession by interpreting his materials as projections of imaginative desire. Furthermore, we can use Frye to criticize the relativist denial of origins in structuralist critics like Michel Foucault and Jacques Derrida.

We, ourselves and who else?

2008 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 23-40 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriella Rundblad
Keyword(s):  
Social Identity ◽  
Medical Research ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Research Team ◽  
Scientific Discourse ◽  
Medical Discourse ◽  
Research Articles ◽  
Passive Voice ◽  
Significant Health

The role of passive voice as a device used in medical and scientific discourse to mystify the author is clearly articulated and well-known. Through analysis of the Methods section of nine medical research articles, this paper shows that metonymy is another frequently used impersonalisation strategy in medical discourse. Furthermore, this paper argues that impersonalisation is not restricted to the authors and that two types of impersonalisation need be distinguished: generalisation and socialisation. Discourse agents were categorised into the ‘present authors’ versus ‘other researchers and health professionals not part of the research team’. Agents were investigated in relation to impersonalisation and social identity. Results show that possessive/causative metonyms are used to produce genderless, generic ‘present authors’ as well as ‘other researchers’. In contrast, more significant ‘health professionals’ are often referred to in terms of representational/locative metonyms highlighting their authoritative social identity. The study also shows that for these non–authorial professionals co-occurrence of metonymy and passive voice is generally avoided. Although ‘present authors’ are mainly absent, this analysis reveals a higher than expected author presence resulting in a significantly higher degree of impersonalisation for non-authorial agents.

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