Sanity, “madness,” and the academy

Maclean, Kate (2016) Sanity, “madness,” and the academy. The Canadian Geographer / Le Géographe canadien, 60 (2). pp. 181-191. ISSN 0008-3658

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Official URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/cag.12264

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 neoliberalization, metricization, and managerialization 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 utilize 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.

Item Type: Article
Uncontrolled Keywords: neoliberal university, mental health, early career researchers, exclusion, R. D Laing
Subjects: L300 Sociology
L700 Human and Social Geography
L900 Others in Social studies
V900 Others in Historical and Philosophical studies
Department: Faculties > Arts, Design and Social Sciences > Social Sciences
Depositing User: Elena Carlaw
Date Deposited: 04 Mar 2020 12:58
Last Modified: 31 Jul 2021 19:32
URI: http://nrl.northumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/42358

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