BIROn - Birkbeck Institutional Research Online

    Sanity, ‘madness,’ and the academy

    Maclean, Kate (2016) Sanity, ‘madness,’ and the academy. The Canadian Geographer 60 (2), pp. 181-191. ISSN 0008-3658.

    [img]
    Preview
    Text
    15011.pdf - Author's Accepted Manuscript

    Download (573kB) | Preview

    Abstract

    In this article I look at the pressures exerted on academics in England, particularly early career researchers, by the collision of what in many cases is an elitist work culture with the neoliberalisation, metricisation, and managerialisation of the academy. I draw on the work of the radical psychoanalyst R. D. Laing, who argued that to understand madness, we have to first critique our ideas of normality and ‘sanity,’ which he argues are inherently constructed of ‘double binds.’ I utilise my own experience working on gender equality in universities, and as an early career lecturer in a geography department, to explore how academics find themselves positioned in a web of neoliberal and traditional, elitist power dynamics and the implications for their mental health.

    Metadata

    Item Type: Article
    Additional Information: This is the peer reviewed version of the article, which has been published in final form at the link above. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Self-Archiving.
    Keyword(s) / Subject(s): Neoliberal university, mental health, early career researchers, exclusion, RD Laing
    School: Birkbeck Faculties and Schools > Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences > School of Social Sciences
    Research Centres and Institutes: Gender and Sexuality, Birkbeck (BiGS), Social Research, Birkbeck Institute for (BISR)
    Depositing User: Kate Maclean
    Date Deposited: 28 Apr 2016 09:23
    Last Modified: 02 Aug 2023 17:23
    URI: https://eprints.bbk.ac.uk/id/eprint/15011

    Statistics

    Activity Overview
    6 month trend
    0Downloads
    6 month trend
    0Hits

    Additional statistics are available via IRStats2.

    Archive Staff Only (login required)

    Edit/View Item Edit/View Item