World Social Psychiatry: A Dream Coming True, but Miles to Go! Roy Abraham Kallivayalil World Social Psychiatry 2019 1(1):1-3

Mens sana in societate sana… toward a wholesome world of social psychiatry Debasish Basu, Nitin Gupta World Social Psychiatry 2019 1(1):4-7

“A person is a person through other persons”:A social psychiatry manifesto for the 21st century Vincenzo Di Nicola World Social Psychiatry 2019 1(1):8-21 A critical issue for our field is how to define contemporary social psychiatry for our times. In this article, I address this definitional task by breaking it down into three major questions for social psychiatry and conclude with a call for action, a manifesto for the 21st century social psychiatry: (1) What is social about psychiatry? I address definitional problems that arise, such as binary thinking, and the need for a common language. (2) What are the theory and practice of social psychiatry? Issues include social psychiatry's core principles, values, and operational criteria; the social determinants of health and the Global Mental Health (GMH) Movement; and the need for translational research. This part of the review establishes the minimal criteria for a coherent theory of social psychiatry and the view of persons that emerges from such a theory, the social self. (3) Why the time has come for a manifesto for social psychiatry. I outline the parameters for a theory of social psychiatry, based on both the social self and the social determinants of health, to offer an inclusive social definition of health, concluding with a call for action, a manifesto for the 21st century social psychiatry.

Medicine is medicine through its disciplines Norman Sartorius World Social Psychiatry 2019 1(1):22-22

The social brain: Wired to connect and belong Eliot Sorel World Social Psychiatry 2019 1(1):23-24

The Importance of the Social in Psychiatry Thomas K J Craig World Social Psychiatry 2019 1(1):25-26

Partnerships in global mental health Helen Herrman World Social Psychiatry 2019 1(1):27-29 The United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals set by the UN General Assembly in 2015 include mental health among the targets for health. The mental health professions can play a role in alerting opinion leaders and decision-makers to the importance of equality and social connectedness in combatting problems that stand in the way of social, economic, and personal development. Problems such as child maltreatment and intimate partner violence, safety and security in communities, bullying in schools, and gender, racial, and other forms of discrimination are prevalent in all countries and closely linked with poor mental health and mental ill-health. They need to be tackled through partnerships between community groups and professionals who between them can map out solutions. The solutions necessarily include interventions within health, education, family, and other systems and operate at multiple levels. Among the solutions are the mental health professions engaging directly with people living in adversity as well as helping to mobilize other sources of help that they can be trained to support. The World Social Psychiatry can play an important role by taking an editorial approach that encourages psychiatrists and other mental health professionals to use their expertise to promote participatory approaches and facilitates the mental health work of nonspecialists across the diverse community settings.

Toward an ecosocial psychiatry Laurence J Kirmayer World Social Psychiatry 2019 1(1):30-32 Social psychiatry is grounded in the recognition that we are fundamentally cultural beings. To advance the field, we need integrative theory and practical tools to better understand, assess, and intervene in the social-ecological cultural systems that constitute our selves and personhood. Cognitive science supports the view that mental processes are intrinsically social, embodied, and enacted through metaphor, narrative, and discursive practices. The circuits of the mind, therefore, extend beyond the brain to include our interactions with others through bodily and verbal communication. This ecosocial view of mind, brain, and culture calls for a shift in perspective from a psychiatry centered on brain circuitry and disorders toward one that recognizes social predicaments as the central focus of clinical concern and social systems or networks as a crucial site for explanation and intervention. The ecosocial perspective insists that we consider the powerful effects of structural violence and social inequality as key determinants of health. Social systems also have their own dynamics which can amplify inequities or provide sources of resilience. These social processes are framed, mediated, and maintained by cultural narratives, models, and metaphors. Hence, cultural analysis and critique must be foundational to social psychiatry. This opens the door to a creative engagement with human diversity in all its forms.

Social psychiatry: The ethical challenges Fernando Lolas World Social Psychiatry 2019 1(1):33-35 Considerations on the ethical challenges facing social psychiatry are based on the fact that it is an academic and applied endeavor harmonizing different forms of knowledge stemming from diverse sources, with different epistemic traditions. The field requires careful analysis of linguistic uses, distinguishing between public, international, and global health research and practice. Ethical imperatives extend from sound research practices to reasoned application of knowledge, advocacy, and counseling.

Inequity in mental health: An issue of increasing public health concern Marianne C Kastrup World Social Psychiatry 2019 1(1):36-38 The WHO Alma-Ata Declaration of 1978 aimed to include social and economic sectors within the scope of attaining health. Health is seen as a human right, and a goal was to reduce disparities in health in 2000. Forty years later, we are far from having reached these goals, and inequity in health both between and within countries is still a major problem that receives too little public and political attention. This article discusses the social determinants of mental health and reasons for disparities thereof. To achieve equity is a goal that is beyond reach, but there are many strategies how to reduce the inequity in health, and examples thereof will also be discussed.