Therapeutic Culture
Subtitle: Triumph and Defeat
Publisher: Transaction Publishers
Published: July 7, 2004
Language: eng
Format: Paperback
Number of pages: 282
ISBN-13: 9780765805928
Subjects: Medicine: General Issues; Sociology, Social Studies; Social institutions; Psychology; Social Science; Sociology; Sociology - General; Social psychology; Psychotherapy - General; Psychological aspects; Civilization, Western; Congresses
Description: "For nearly half a century, social scientists have made claims that there is a "therapeutic ethos" with extensive influence upon numerous aspects of American society. In Therapeutic Culture, twelve authors address the implications of this ethos and its effects on a wide range of social institutions, extending from the family to schools and operating in religious behavior and within the legal system. Has there been, as the sociological theorist Philip Rieff argued in 1966, a "triumph of the therapeutic?" If so, in what kinds of institutions has it been most pervasive? At the same time, what aspects of modern culture has it replaced or defeated? Therapeutic Culture addresses these questions, and raises others." "This volume establishes a benchmark for further theoretical reflection and empirical research on the nature of therapeutic culture. It will be of interest to sociologists, psychologists, political scientists, and cultural studies specialists."--Jacket.