[ecrea] cfp - Online disorders. Recomposing mental health on and with the Internet.

Revue/journal RESET (Recherches en Sciences Sociales sur Internet)
http://www.recherches-internet.org
Call for abstracts

Online disorders. Recomposing mental health on and with the Internet.

The increasing significance of mental health issues in contemporary 
societies raises a number of questions. The concept of mental health is 
used by actors in medicine, politics and the media in ways that imply a 
range of definitions of "good" or "bad" mental health. The World Health 
Organization for instance defines a mental health disorder as "some 
combination of abnormal thoughts, emotions, behaviour and relationships 
with others" (WHO, 2011, p. 10). Indeed, the diversity of actors using 
the concept seems to lead to a similar diversity of definitions of what 
is behaviourally and emotionally 'normal' and, as a consequence, what 
counts as a 'disorder'.
We define the field of mental health research as the study of behaviour 
and affects that are socially considered deviant, as well as the 
institutions and professionals concerned with, and the categories and 
concepts arising within psychiatry, neurology, genetics and the other 
medical disciplines concerned with the understanding of these disorders. 
In a number of different ways, the Internet appears to have given rise 
to what we might call recompositions of the field of mental health. 
Internet use has been thought to cause a number of disorders, such as 
addiction (Valleur, 2009 ; Young, 1998), depression and isolation 
(Mohseni & Sohrabi, 2007 ; Sanders, Field, Diego & Kaplan, 2000). On the 
other hand, certain uses of new communication technology have been seen 
as being beneficial to mental health by reducing the risk of depression 
(Pénard et al., 2011 ; Ford & Ford, 2009). On another level, 
relationships between individuals and mental health professionals and 
institutions have been transformed by new media technologies, which as 
potential interfaces for health care raise new possibilities for therapy 
(Zermatten, et al., 2010 ; Leroux, 2008 ; Radillo, 2009), new 
deontological questions (Convert & Demailly, 2003), new practical 
concerns (Palazzolo, 2003) and a need for the evaluation of online 
information tools (Reavley & Jorm, 2011). Furthermore, the Internet has 
given rise to new forms of collective action around illnesses and 
treatments, in which organizations of patients or patients' families 
find ways to intervene in the professional fields of medicine and 
psychology (Méadel, 2006). Some consider this to signal the emergence of 
a new enlightened health care consumer, likely to reconfigure the 
traditional mercantile model of relationships in health care (Le Pen, 
2009 ; Nabarette, 2002), or of a more reflexive consumer of medication 
(Méadel & Akrich, 2002).

Suggested core issues
This issue of Reset aims to further the conceptualization and study of 
the recompositions of the field of mental health in relation to and on 
the Internet. We call for proposals dealing with this core issue and 
suggest several directions for quantitative, qualitative and theoretical 
inquiry:
Implications of the Internet for labeling theories (Link & Phelan, 
1999a,  1999b ; Scheff, 1966 ; Thoits, 1985), for instance in terms of 
the "observability" (Hacking, 1998) of disorders through Internet use or 
in terms of changes in processes of individual categorization as being 
mentally ill.
Causes and modalities of new "pathologies" and new "therapies" related 
to networked communication technology. Social and historical 
perspectives on the construction of such categories (Oliveri, 2009), on 
the concrete experience of allegedly new forms of illness and care and 
on the ways social actors appropriate them.
Reassessing the social role of the mentally ill, in regard to uses of 
the Internet. To what extent does this mean an additional step in 
rethinking Goffman's insitutions and the subsequent "opening" of 
psychiatry (Estroff, 1985)? How does Internet use affect the relation 
between role accumulation and issues related to mental illness (Gove & 
Tudor, 1973)? What are the implications of the Internet as an individual 
means to redefine identity (Kennedy, 2006 ; Turkle, 1995) or to avoid 
stigmatization (Brossard, 2011)?

In addition to empirical work addressing these core questions, the 
journal welcomes contributions to two sections intended to broaden the 
scope of discussion:
"    Contemporary relevance of social science classics. This section is 
dedicated to theoretical reflections on the heuristic value of 
pioneering social science works, ranging from Weber to Elias, Durkheim 
to Foucault or Merton, Becker or Goffman for instance, or any theories 
considered fundamental with respect to a specific concept or area.
"    Opening disciplinary horizons. This section welcomes perspectives 
beyond the usual boundaries of social science, such as economics, law 
and medical disciplines broadly defined.

Varia
Reset also accepts submissions of abstracts for work unrelated to the 
specific thematic orientation of the issue, but focusing on Internet as 
a research object or research method for the study of social science 
issues. With respect to the criteria of empirical and theoretical 
quality, these submissions are evaluated in the same way as responses to 
the specific call for papers.

Author instructions
Abstracts of no more than 400 words are expected by January, the 31st, 
2012.
Complete papers of no more than 7,000 words (plus bibliography) are 
expected by April, the 30th, 2012.
Please submit your proposals to the following e-mail address: 
(contact /at/ recherches-internet.org).
Evaluation process
Reset follows a process of double-blind peer-reviewing. Submissions are 
anonymized before evaluation and evaluators remain anonymous. Each paper 
is assessed by at least three reviewers: one issue editor, one member of 
the editorial board, and one external expert specialized in the relevant 
field.


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