>Did not he argue that schizophrenia was a "socially constructed"
>illness that has no neurological basis. More recent research shows it
>does (see below.)
>
No, he didn't--at least not in any of his books that I read! Like
almost all psychological disorders, schizophrenia is influenced by a
complex interaction of biological and social factors. Twin studies make
that abundantly clear: the concordance rate for schizophrenia in
identical twins is 50-60%, so being a genetic clone of a schizophrenic
increases my risk of schizophrenia, but psychological and environmental
factors must also be important (otherwise the concordance rate would be
100%). In any case, this has no bearing on Szasz's central argument
that the labelling and treatment of psychological disorders is primarily
a mechanism for social control.
Miles