ABSTRACT

This chapter examines contested understandings of “mental health”, from the most dominant biological perspectives through to less well-known social and political explanations of mental distress. It outlines key components of a critical perspective on mental health, most notably, its exploration of the intersections between mental health diagnostic practices and social power relations. Critiquing claims of objectivity within psychiatric practices, the chapter argues that constructions of mental health and mental illness are shaped by the norms of patriarchal and neoliberal societies, which privilege “productive” and “rational” forms of personhood. Following this, the chapter discusses how psychiatric practices both reflect and perpetuate gender inequality through using mental health labels to categorise women’s experiences as dysfunctional, while ignoring the social contexts of women’s distress. Consequently, women may experience mental health labels as initially useful, but ultimately disempowering. Feminist critiques of psychiatric practices are discussed, including the diverse contributions of second-wave and poststructural feminisms. While second-wave feminism offers an incisive analysis of how patriarchal power is both reflected and reinforced through mental health systems, poststructural feminism allows for women’s resistances and diverse experiences to be more fully acknowledged.