History 2190A/B Lecture 16: Lecture 16
18 Jan 2019
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Document Summary
Medicalization is the process by which some aspects of human life come to be understood and treated as a medical problem. Crime has been medicalized in two ways: 1. Reversed : allowed health professionals ( experts ) to define and control a range of social problems: delinquency, vagrancy, alcoholism etc, negative consequences. Increases medicine"s ability to control social behaviour: of over-medicalization, removes individual agency, 2. Criminal lunatics act (1800: criminal lunatics act (1800, england, law that set up procedures for dealing with criminal defendants deemed to be insane , allowed for indefinite incarceration (insane asylum, basis of canadian and american treatment. Judges/juries decided whether or not someone was insane based on witness testimony (ex. neighbours) Provide service such as determination of competency to stand trial to help the courts make legal decisions and to provide treatment like medications and psychotherapy to criminals. Increased use of medial experts in the courtroom in north america.
