GENERAL CONFERENCE INFORMATION AND OVERVIEW

Conference Description

This international conference will combine invited and submitted papers and structured discussions on a range of themes concerning the relation of psychiatry and human freedom. The intended audience is the public, mental health professionals, philosophers, social scientists, ethicists, humanities academics, and policymakers. A range of topical “sections” have been organized, which explore the domain of Psychiatry & Freedom. The conference organizers welcome suggestions and submissions for novel “sections.” Sections may include invited and submitted papers, “paper sessions” and “symposia.” A Conference objective is the development of conference sections or presentations into chapters for one or more topical books to be published in a book series under the “Psychiatry and Freedom” rubric. The official conference language is English.

Conference Objectives

The conference intends to assess the status of psychiatry’s impact on, or contribution to, human freedoms; assess ideological, political, sociocultural, methodological, and epistemic influences on psychiatry as a humanitarian discipline; and propose constructive ideas for public and professional policy concerning mental health care and its place in society. The conference is intended to stimulate scholarly interest in the issues of psychiatry and freedom, and organize an international community of scholars around this theme.

Conference Organization

The conference, hosted by the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, organized in conjunction with the International Network of Philosophy and Psychiatry (INPP) and the Association for the Advancement of Philosophy and Psychiatry, will be organized around the topical sections noted above and exemplified below. The conference office at UT Southwestern will coordinate the activities for all sections.  For further information, contact Linda Muncy at Linda.Muncy@UTSouthwestern.edu ,or in the USA 214-648-4960.