Poverty, Pathology and Pills conference – call for papers

Poverty and deprivation create mental distress and make it worse. Although recent years have seen governments committing to expand mental health provision, such strategies are usually underpinned by biomedical and diagnostic assumptions that
draw on medical ‘solutions’ whilst overlooking the broader socio-economic context in which poverty-related distress manifests and plays out. This becomes particularly contentious in times of economic austerity, when strategies aimed at reforming
systems of welfare support intersect with those aimed at supporting mental health and wellbeing.

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Building on the findings of our ESRC funded project (DeStress), this full-day, interdisciplinary conference will analyse the inter-relationship between poverty and distress, and will interrogate the relevance and effectiveness of current mental health treatment options. The day will provide an opportunity for people to present their findings alongside DeStress and to develop new research ideas and collaborations.

Find out more.