Re: [xmca] RE: mental health

HI,

I have to check with Ana Smolka. I'm not doing research in this area so I
don't know much. I've followed very little on the recent discussions
involving affect or emotions. I'll get back to you.

Karin
----- Original Message -----
From: "Achilles Delari Junior" <achilles_delari@hotmail.com>
To: "eXtended Mind, Culture, Activity" <xmca@weber.ucsd.edu>
Sent: Saturday, July 12, 2008 9:19 PM
Subject: RE: [xmca] RE: mental health

Karin,

Thank you, very much.
I didn't know CCA's work, it's very important.
I'm interested in "dramatization" and "social
roles psychology" (Vygotsky, 1929/2000
"Concret human pscyhology" [1929's manuscript]).
Your studies about "Art and feelings and the
relationship with development" are very important
to me as well. Do you suggest any GPPL's
publication in this field?

Achilles,
Umuarama, July 2008.
> From: mktostes@uol.com.br> To: xmca@weber.ucsd.edu> Subject: Re: [xmca]
> RE: mental health> Date: Sat, 12 Jul 2008 11:36:55 -0300> > Very
> interesting topic!> I certailny agree with the question of changing our
> social 'milieu' to > improve people's mental health and we could list lots
> of situations. From > personal experience, as my daughter is a little
> different from most people > and, at the same time, not diagnosed with any
> disease (she is anti-social, a > little depressive, she says she's
> bipolar, etc.), we feel the pressure of > others, especially family, who
> think she has to act and do the same things > others do, the same way
> others do. Well...> Now, thinking of mental health, health problems and
> art. I just remembered > that there is a group in Brazil at Unicamp in the
> Linguistics department, > working in conjunction with the Neurology
> department (I don't know if > Achilles knows their work) who work with
> aphasic people. It's called Centro > de Convivencia de Afasicos (CCA).
> They rely on Luria's work and, taking an > enunciative-discursive
> approach, they have meetings with the group once a > week and they have a
> dramatization session. CCA is a place for interaction > among aphasic and
> non-aphasic people (family, researchers and therapeuts). > It's a reaction
> to the exclusion these people feel in society and they try > to promote
> effective language use and action and routine activities.> > You can check
> it out (in Portuguese, though) at> >
> http://www.unicamp.br/iel/labonecca/centro_convivencia_afasico.htm> > Art
> and feelings and the relationship with development has also been the >
> concern of our research group (GPPL) in the Education faculty.> > Best,> >
> Karin Quast> > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Peter Smagorinsky"
> <smago@uga.edu>> To: "'eXtended Mind, Culture, Activity'"
> <xmca@weber.ucsd.edu>> Sent: Saturday, July 12, 2008 10:12 AM> Subject:
> RE: [xmca] RE: mental health> > > Achilles, again I speak largely from
> experience here. I think that there's a> balance between attending to the
> neuroatypical issues (autism, bipolar> disorder, etc.) and attending to
> what's more strictly on the outside (other> people's attitudes, the social
> arrangement of material surroundings that> channel thinking about
> difference--see, e.g., accommodations for physically> handicapped
> people).> > What we argue in the book excerpt, and what Leslie argues, is
> that it's> vitally important to create mediational contexts that both
> contribute to new> settings (when there are wheelchair ramps, being
> wheelchair-bound appears to> all to be less of a handicap) and new ways
> for people to think about> themselves; or as some research suggests (see
> Damasio in our review below),> new ways for the brain to encode
> perceptions.> > This is not to say that some conditions do not require
> additional attention.> I take a medication for anxiety, and many people I
> know take antipsychotics,> depression medications, and so on. Undoubtedly
> there's some overprescription> of such meds, but many of us are glad to
> have the option.> > One thing seems certain: We need more research in this
> area, so I strongly> encourage you to extend your investigation!
> Best,Peter> > > > -----Original Message-----> From:
> xmca-bounces@weber.ucsd.edu [mailto:xmca-bounces@weber.ucsd.edu] On>
> Behalf Of Achilles Delari Junior> Sent: Friday, July 11, 2008 7:36 PM> To:
> eXtended Mind, Culture, Activity> Subject: RE: [xmca] RE: mental health> >
> > Thank you, very much Peter...> > "Cook (2004) argues that relying simply
> on medication and counseling> is inadequate; that a broader environmental
> change that enables an> understanding and tolerance of difference, and
> gives young people> tools for managing their difference, is essential to
> helping young people> construct positive lives for themselves and in turn
> contribute to a more> humane society."> > It's a beautiful and deep
> contribution. I really agree with this> orientation.> But, let me ask you:
> don't you think that could exist a subtle distinction> between (a)
> "tolerance of difference related to inclusive education" and> (b)
> "(self)tolerance of mental pain"? I think about my own experience:> there
> are several moments in which I don't only accept my different>
> (dysfunctional) process, but desire overcome/master it... There are four>
> hyperbolic semiotic process that I recognize (and struggle with) in BAD>
> (bipolar affective disorder): {paranoia<->megalomania} (mania) X>
> (depression) {self-moralist<->suicide ideation}. And I know that if
> social> others learn to comprehend and accept these different semiotic
> ways of> means world and my own experience, changing "social situation"
> by> inter-mental mediation, my own personal sense for this process can be>
> transformed. But, even so, a paranoid delirium not always can be only>
> accepted. If we could understand cultural-historical genetical roots of>
> mental pain, can we do something to not only accept it, but even>
> overcome/replace its dysfunctional social/personal consequences?> Here,
> ariseesthe problem of "psykhotekhnika" again, an approach that> not only
> explains psychic process as function of social relations, but> socially>
> (and deliberately) constructs it too.> > Personally talking, seems to be
> not too easy to me to engage myself> in social relations that could
> actually produce important functional> (and structural-dynamical) changes
> in my life - even more, since I> haven't control about multiple social and
> biological determinations.> Things seems turns better or worse more in a
> casual than a determinist> way. But, by epistemological principles and
> with an emotional need to hope,> I know that social formation of mind is
> open to co-construction/> inter-constitution/co-existence (sobytie). Along
> the years, Vygotsky's> claims> (to create new psychology and new means to
> make people's life better)> make me take this problem of psychology
> applied to mental health as a kind> of personal and professional challenge
> to my own mental (cognitive/> affective)> resources. (but sorry about my
> "ecogentric language" here, righ now, i will> control me better in
> future)> > Oh, sure. One more operational question. Let me ask: is this
> "dissertation> of Leslie Cook" ("who looked at young women with depressive
> disorders> and the mediational means they use to make sense of their
> lives")> available in any digital midia?> > Thank you very much, for this
> opportunity of inter-constitution. I must> organize my reading tasks now,
> there are very important contributions of all> > you here.> > Achilles>
> Umuarama, July, 11 2008.> > From: smago@uga.edu> To: xmca@weber.ucsd.edu>
> Subject: RE: [xmca] RE:> mental health> Date: Fri, 11 Jul 2008
> 15:24:52 -0400> > Achilles asks: > Can> we really creat semiotical means
> to produce better mental health to people?> Or this kind of a goal is a
> mistake like possible Vygotsky´s or perhaps some> Vygotsky's followers'
> mistakes about 'social engeneering'?> > I would say> YES to the first
> question. I'll take a shortcut and paste something in below> from a book
> I've coauthored about The Discourse of Character Education> (Erlbaum,
> 2005, with Joel Taxel). It draws on the dissertation of Leslie> Cook, who
> looked at young women with depressive disorders and the> mediational means
> they use to make sense of their lives. My apologies for> the length of the
> following excerpt.> > > Mental Health and Character> Education> We have
> briefly expressed our concern that the issue of mental> health is
> virtually absent from discussions about character education. Yet> many
> students who come to school with a mental health problems are treated> as
> discipline problems of the sort measured as indexes of low character in>
> the proposals we have studied. We believe that it is important for any>
> character education initiative to recognize and account for mental health
> in> its conception of good character, both for those with nonnormative
> makeups> and those with whom they interact.> Mental health is the elephant
> in the> character education closet. The World Health Organization (2001)
> reports> that about 7.5 million children in the U. S.-12% of all children
> under> 18-have mental disorders, nearly half of which lead to serious
> disability.> Jamison (1997) found that 20% of high school students had
> seriously> considered committing suicide during the year prior to his
> study, with most> having drawn up a suicide plan; suicide is the #3 cause
> of death of> teenagers between 15 and 19 years of age, often following
> from a depressive> disorder. Yet most parents and teachers feel that
> mental health issues are> poorly addressed in schools (Dowling & Pound,
> 1994; Rappaport & Carolla,> 1999), many teachers have little understanding
> of how to recognize or> respond to students with mental health problems
> (Madison, 1996), and only> recently has mental health been identified as a
> reason to develop an> Individual Education Plan (IEP) for students.> These
> widespread> misunderstandings have resulted in many such students being
> regarded as> troublesome or lacking character in schools. Yet, as reporter
> Anne Imse> (1999) wrote following the Columbine school shooting tragedy, >
> Even teens> as dangerously troubled as Eric Harris stand a good chance of
> slipping> through the cracks in Jefferson County and across Colorado,
> failing to get> badly needed mental health care. There are serious
> roadblocks to getting> treatment for sick kids [including]> . State
> prohibitions against law> enforcement agencies telling schools about a
> problem kid unless there's a> conviction; > . Schools worrying about being
> saddled with psychiatric bills> if they recommend treatment, or even being
> sued; > . Not enough money> earmarked for counselors and counseling for
> the state's youth. > So, even> though Jefferson County school officials
> have become more sensitive to kids'> mental states . . . they remain
> hamstrung about arranging treatment. "We> have no place to go with them,"
> said Clark Bencomo, a counselor at Green> Mountain High School. "All we
> can do is suspend or expel." "We are> oftentimes reduced to putting a kid
> in a place where they're safe, but it's> not the right program," added Kay
> Cessna, intervention services director for> Jefferson County schools.
> "There are not enough places." [One parent of a> child with disabilities
> complained], "They don't have the time, the> manpower, and they don't get
> it."> (http://denver.rockymountainnews.com/shooting/0516ment2.shtml) >
> Cook (2004)> finds this problem occurring in other states as well,
> reporting that> students with mental health problems are often put in
> special education> programs or disciplined when they act out, either as a
> consequence of their> makeup (e.g., a child with Tourette's syndrome's
> involuntary profanity) or> in response to the taunting they face from
> their peers.> Yet a mental health> professional would surely argue that
> the problem is not a lack of character> and the solution is not to punish
> students with mental health problems.> Rather, a broader understanding of
> mental health among students and> faculty-the sort of attention to climate
> we found in the states from the> Upper Midwest-would contribute to a more
> sympathetic and less punitive> environment for such students in school.
> Indeed, Damasio (1994) argues in> his somatic-marker theory against the
> classic Cartesian mind/body binary,> instead positing that brain and body
> are integrally related not just to one> another but to the environment. A
> change in the environment, he finds, may> contribute to changes in how a
> person processes new information (cf. Luria,> 1979; Pert, 1997); that is,
> in response to developments in the surroundings,> the brain will encode
> perceptions in new kinds of ways. > Conceivably, then,> changes in school
> climate can contribute to the emotional well-being of> students whose
> mental makeup falls outside the normal range. The therapy for> such
> students is still widely debated. While medication and counseling have>
> benefited many with nonnormative makeups in their relationships with
> others,> the medical model has been criticized because it assumes that a
> normative> mental state is best for all. This criticism frequently comes
> up in debates> about whether medications for Attention Deficit Disorder
> are prescribed too> often for any students who have difficulty focusing in
> school. Some argue> that prescribing such medications is designed more to
> increase the comfort> levels of those around such students than to help
> those students> themselves.> The jury is still out concerning the question
> of whether people> with such diagnoses are sick and in need of medicine.
> Cook (2004) argues> that relying simply on medication and counseling is
> inadequate; that a> broader environmental change that enables an
> understanding and tolerance of> difference, and gives young people tools
> for managing their difference, is> essential to helping young people
> construct positive lives for themselves> and in turn contribute to a more
> humane society. Taking a punitive approach> to difference, she argues, is
> regressive and only makes life more fragile> for those characterized as
> different and more emotionally and cognitively> unhealthy for those who
> surround them.> >> _______________________________________________> xmca
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Received on Sat Jul 12 18:55 PDT 2008