Psychiatry and the Management of Aerial Warfare: A study of the Royal Air Force Neuropsychiatric Division in the prevention and treatment of psychiatric casualties, 1939-1945 (360G-Wellcome-096818_Z_11_Z)

The proposed research shall critically assess the role played by psychiatry in the management of aerial warfare, 1939-1945. This shall be addressed through an examination of the therapeutic and administrative practices of the Royal Air Force Neuropsychiatric division during the Second World War. The research intends to identify, describe and critically assess the roles played by psychiatrists in the prevention and treatment of Royal Air Force psychiatric casualties. It will evaluate how far formal psychiatric knowledge was valued by Royal Air Force decision makers by assessing how far psychiatric knowledge and recommendations underpinned policy decisions and practice. Furthermore, it shall assess how far Royal Air Force preventive psychiatric policy, treatment and rehabilitation were successful. A comprehensive survey of the period 1939-1945 shall highlight the role of psychiatrists in recruitment, screening, policy-making and the treatment of psychiatric casualties. The research will also address broader themes in the history of psychiatry by analysing what psychiatric knowledge underpinned recommendations and treatment, and the professional status of psychiatry. The overall goal of the research is to produce an authoritative account of Royal Air Force psychiatry and to build solid foundations for further research.