Citation

Ólafsdóttir S. Scand. J. Public Health 2019; 47(2): 87-89.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, Associations of Public Health in the Nordic Countries Regions, Publisher SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/1403494819830340

PMID

30921529

Abstract

It is well known that the diseases that affect us have changed drastically over the past 100 years, as multiple societies have moved from a disease profile wherein a significant proportion of the population is killed by infectious diseases to an increased burden of chronic and mental health problems. What is striking, and of course most relevant for this issue, is this increased burden of mental health problems, especially in rich democracies. A recent policy report on the global burden of disease places depression at number three when evaluating the global burden of disability, measured by years lived with any short- or long-term disability. As it is expected that the academic community and high-quality scholarly research reflect societal developments, it is not surprising that researchers from various disciplinary backgrounds increasingly emphasize mental health in their work. For example, the American Sociological Association established a section on medical sociology in 1959 and a section on mental health in 1993. Similarly, their flagship journal on health in general (including mental health)—The Journal of Health and Social Behavior—is currently in its 59th volume, while the journal Society and Mental Health is in its 8th. Considered within the sociological context of the Nordic countries, while the Nordic Sociological Association does not have topical sections, the programme of sessions for the Association’s most recent conference reveals that 3 sessions out of 20 sessions were focused on health, with one specifically calling for papers on mental health. A quick look at the most recent volume of the flagship Nordic journal Acta Sociologica shows that, out of 23 articles published, only one was health-related, focusing on gender and sickness absence. While sociology is of course only one of the many fields engaged in the study of health and mental health, sociologists have a long tradition of engagement in health-related research, and several of the early breakthrough studies in the sociology of health represent an interdisciplinary collaboration with a focus on mental illness.

The combination of the increased importance of mental health research, the history of mental health studies in sociology and the seemingly scant sociological attention paid to mental health within the Nordic context made it especially appealing, for me as a sociologist, to assemble this special issue on mental health. While the focus of the issue was intentionally left broad, certain themes emerged, in terms of focus, methodological approach and country studied ...

Language: en