'Unable to give any account of himself': Male experiences of Stanley Royd asylum, Wakefield, 1880-1900. (360G-Wellcome-092991_Z_10_Z)

The project examines the influence and interplay of popular and scientific explanations for male mental illness during the period 1880-1900. My first key goal will be to gather a sample for statistical analysis, enabling me to identify any significant differences between the experiences of male and female patients at Stanley Royd asylum e.g. duration of illness prior to admission. This will allow me to compare and place my findings within the existing historiography, and highlight any points of particular interest that merit further investigation e.g. the reasons given at admission for male/female committal. Secondly, I will examine medical casebooks for insights into the opinions of doctors, families and acquaintances on the situation of the patient: if there are clear judgements on a male patient's state of mind which flow from contemporary ideals of 'manliness', and if treatments draw explicitly upon such ideas e.g. the prescription of strong beer and physical work to remedy a man's 'weak' nature. Thirdly, papers and lectures by asylum doctors will be consulted. As well as investigating the possibility of biological explanations reinforcing or challenging existing gender stereotypes, these will chart the development of biological psychiatry at Stanley Royd that influenced researchers further afield.