John Read and Jeffrey Masson - Biological Psychiatry and the Mass Murder of "Schizophrenics"
Mad in America: Rethinking Mental Health10 Aug 2022

John Read and Jeffrey Masson - Biological Psychiatry and the Mass Murder of "Schizophrenics"

On the Mad in America podcast this week, we hear from the co-authors of a paper published in the journal Ethical Human Psychology and Psychiatry which documents the mass murder of a quarter of a million people, mostly diagnosed as "schizophrenic" in Europe during the Second World War.

Later, we hear from Dr. Jeffrey Masson, who is an author and a scholar of Sanskrit and psychoanalysis. But first, we talk with professor of psychology John Read. Regular visitors to Mad in America will know of John's work. For those that don't know, John worked for nearly 20 years as a clinical psychologist and manager of mental health services in the UK and the USA, before joining the University of Auckland, New Zealand, in 1994, where he worked until 2013. He has served as director of the clinical psychology professional graduate programmes at both Auckland and, more recently, the University of Liverpool. He currently works in the School of Psychology at the University of East London.

John has many research interests, including critical appraisals of the use of psychiatric drugs and electroconvulsive therapy.

Jeffrey Masson has had a fascinating career in which he studied Sanskrit and psychoanalysis and became director of the Sigmund Freud archives. A prolific author, he has written more than 30 books and has become an advocate for animal rights. He is currently an Honorary Fellow in the Department of Philosophy at the University of Auckland in New Zealand.

We discuss how John and Jeffrey came to write a paper which examines a grim period in psychiatric history.

Episoder(292)

UberTherapy and the Enshittification of our Relational Lives: Part 1 of our Interview with Elizabeth Cotton

UberTherapy and the Enshittification of our Relational Lives: Part 1 of our Interview with Elizabeth Cotton

Elizabeth Cotton is Associate Professor of Responsible Business at the University of Leicester and the founder of Surviving Work, which carries out socially engaged research on mental health and work....

11 Feb 46min

Food First, Pharma Last - Part Two of our Interview with Chris Masterjohn

Food First, Pharma Last - Part Two of our Interview with Chris Masterjohn

This week, we are joined by Chris Masterjohn, PhD. Chris is a nutritional scientist, a former professor, and the founder of Mitome. With a PhD in nutritional science and years of research in mitochond...

28 Jan 44min

Mitochondria and Energetic Failures - A New Understanding of Antidepressant Withdrawal? An Interview with Chris Masterjohn

Mitochondria and Energetic Failures - A New Understanding of Antidepressant Withdrawal? An Interview with Chris Masterjohn

This week, we are joined by Chris Masterjohn, PhD. Chris is a nutritional scientist, a former professor, and the founder of Mitome. With a PhD in nutritional science and years of research in mitochond...

21 Jan 43min

Why Critical Mental Health Knowledge Is Essential for Ethical Practice: An Interview with Jan DeFehr

Why Critical Mental Health Knowledge Is Essential for Ethical Practice: An Interview with Jan DeFehr

Jan N. DeFehr is an associate professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of Winnipeg and an associate of The Taos Institute and a member of the Faculty for Palestine, Manitoba. She is als...

14 Jan 47min

ADHD Diagnoses, Examining the Psyche, Withdrawal and PSSD Risks, ECT Harms and More: Robert Whitaker Answers Reader Questions

ADHD Diagnoses, Examining the Psyche, Withdrawal and PSSD Risks, ECT Harms and More: Robert Whitaker Answers Reader Questions

In our first podcast of 2026, Robert Whitaker joins us to answer questions submitted by Mad in America readers and listeners. We discuss the validity of ADHD diagnoses, withdrawal and sexual dysfuncti...

7 Jan 48min

Learning to Soar: A Conversation With Artist Kev G Mor

Learning to Soar: A Conversation With Artist Kev G Mor

Musician and artist Kev G Mor joins us to discuss his experience of psychosis, his daily support strategies, and the pros and cons of having a hundred-pound pit bull terrier for emotional support. Kev...

17 Des 202543min

Antidepressant Withdrawal: Finding an Astronomical Perspective - A Conversation with Safa Askeri

Antidepressant Withdrawal: Finding an Astronomical Perspective - A Conversation with Safa Askeri

Safa Askeri joins us to discuss his experience of antidepressant withdrawal and the gaslighting he was subjected to as he raised concerns with his doctors. "After this happened to me, I know that I ca...

19 Nov 202537min

Psychiatric Drugs: The Real World is Where the Harms Live

Psychiatric Drugs: The Real World is Where the Harms Live

Joining us for a roundtable discussion are Brooke Siem, David Antonuccio, Kim Witzak, Angie Peacock and David Healy. They discuss the challenges of openly discussing psychiatric drug withdrawal, the t...

29 Okt 202545min

Populært innen Helse

fastlegen
rss-gukild-johaug
lydartikler-fra-aftenposten
hvordan-har-du-det-mann
psykodrama
relasjonspodden-med-dora-thorhallsdottir-kjersti-idem
leger-om-livet
rss-garne-damer
hormonelle-frida
foreldreradet
morten-ramm-lar-kakla-ga-til-du-sovner
bak-fasaden-en-reise-i-livet-med-sykepleier-ine
hjernesterk
rss-lopedrommen
klimaks
g-punktet
rss-kull
helsetipspodden
treningsprat
rss-kunsten-a-leve