Decolonising madness? Transcultural psychiatry, international order and the birth of a global psyche (360G-Wellcome-210978_Z_18_Z)

Are mental illnesses and the core concepts in the psychiatric toolkit universal and identical across cultures, ethnic groups and 'civilisations'? This research will offer the first substantial historical analysis of the roots of the current global mental health movement and transcultural psychiatry. It challenges the idea that the concept of a global psyche is a recent development, and aims to demonstrate that it emerged in the aftermath of WWII and during decolonisation, when Western psychiatry endeavored to leave behind its colonial legacies, and lay the foundation for a new union of Western and non-Western concepts of mental illness and healing. In this period, leading psychiatrists across the globe set about identifying and debating the universal psychological characteristics and psychopathological mechanisms shared among all cultures. My research will explore this psychiatric, social and cultural search for a new definition of 'common humanity', and analyse the core medical-historical forces behind it. The International Pilot Study of Schizophrenia will serve as a case study. The project will involve the scoping of archives in Europe, Africa, Asia and the US, the employment of four research assistants, organisation of an international conference, and the creation of a network of researchers and practitioners in global psychiatry.