We could do with contributions from yourselves, especially from the Health Care perspectives and from 'Direct Care' Social Care Perspectives. You can email your contributions to me Terry.Couchman@visitweb.org, attaching your copy in any popular format. Each of these areas has a bearing upon Psychological and Emotional Health and on Mental Illness and many Social Problems.

Please note, Critical Perspectives from within your own discipline are most appreciated. You do not have to limit yourself to these though. Constructive Criticism is preferred but critical analysis and comment on bad practice, by an institution, named or un-named is acceptable. If named the institution will be given a right to reply. Bad practice by individuals should not be identified.

Contribution will be published, but you can use a pseudonym, if you wish. To retain proper copy write (even if published anonymously), please include you name, profession, specialism, country of practice, etc., and date of writing. Your personal details will not be used if you request this. Managers & Service Users are encouraged to make contributions also.

Critical Perspectives 'IN FULL'

Critical Perspectives:

Critical Perspectives basically incorporate two essential connotations of 'Critical' (as we will use the term here, anyway). The primary understanding is the consideration of issues that are critical to our client's needs & risks and welfare of people generally.

The second understanding is that the perspectives on what we are doing (as individuals and as institutions) need to remain sharp, reflective, open to question and to logical analysis (Critical), recognising 'the assumptions' we are making. Some of these assumption are sound enough for most everyday living, but flawed for scientific and professional thinking. Even most professional thinking is flawed.

To understand what I mean by 'perspective' better: This is not just about opinion, (although opinion is fine, if stated as such). Perspective will always contain an element of opinion, but it is important to support our 'perspective' with evidence and a defined 'context' of the perspective. This mitigates 'opinion' to some degree.

It is, after all, 'a perspective' and like all perspectives, what we conceptually 'see' will be affected by what we are looking for and where in the 'field of view' we are focusing. Too narrow a focus and we become blinkered. To wide an angle and we risk missing the most important points for the problems currently being considered.

Critical Perspective is about thoughtfully reviewing any person, situation, issue, or problem from one, or each of many, relative 'conceptual' positions; i.e., this could be the context of patient / client, the professional, the resources, the economics, political influences, management demands, the community, other professions, etc.

Perception & Conception.

We should not limit ourselves to the 'standard' perspectives alone. If you identify another way of conceptually 'seeing' (conceiving) a situation, issue, or problem, please illustrate this for us. This is the 'Radical' aspect of Critical Perspective and can open up new avenues of study & research with potential for better solutions.

We use the term 'perspective' with a little distortion here, because we are actually considering 'conceptual' perspective. This is not as big a difference as we may first think though. When we 'perceive' through our senses, we do so through in the 'context' of all previous sensory perceptions and their impact upon how we think.

In may ways we 'learn', through repeated observations, gradually moderated though our natural propensity to create some order & make things more predictable. This is then tempered by the linguistic influence of parents, sibling, peers institutions and culture.

What we eventually perceive through our senses is quite severely moderated by how we have learned to 'conceptualise'. What we see and conceive of is 'set' in large measure. This works for us on a day-to-day basis and allows us to 'fit' our culture and sit comfortable with most of its Laws, etc.

Comfortable as this is, when we turn to 'professional' decisions and actions we have to moderate our usual ways of perceiving and conceiving. e have to be more critical of our incorporated assumptions. The 'physical' sciences give us the very best model for doing this, as we will show throughout these linked web pages.

To understand this fully, you will sometimes have to open you mind to 'seeing things' a little differently from you everyday experiences. The kind of science we are talking about is not the cold calculating 'empirical' science. It is a much warmer, creative and open minded science. Suspend your prejudices and - Enjoy . . . . . .

Radical does not equate to right or wrong. It equates to continued growth. Radical elements are necessary, or the plant dies off, especially is it is cut back too far. If the Radical Of-shoot cuts itself off from the 'stock & roots' of the organism it can die.

If the Radical Shoot is not well bedded into good soil and developing its own roots, it will wither alone. If it prepares well and establishes itself and develops its own roots, in good ground, it can become an interdependent entity in it own right.

NOTE:

This Document is still at some stage of development. You are invited to respond and comment on its content and its logic. If you return to the document at a future date, you will be able to see its continued development, hopefully reflecting your own and others commentary.

I thank you, in advance, for any contribution that you make. Please also feel free to visit and contribute, in any valid way, to these and other social issues, through our Forums. There is also a Chat Room and protected Chat Space for more serious group discussions and individual counselling. Please feel free o use this space for your legitimate activities.

Copyright:

Although you will see very few reference to other formal writings in this document, I acknowledge general recognition to the discussions and debates that I have had with students, practitioners and clients over the years. Most of the ideas and theory has evolved through this rather pragmatic process (operational research), rather than any formal reading.

If any content of this document describes concepts, theory, or ideas that have been established else where, (prior to my writing, either here or else where - in part or in full), I acknowledge their entitlement to claim them as their intellectual property for financial purposes, if they can evidence this. I also reserve the right to retain them as my intellectual property, with due recognition to those who have made direct contributions, including other writers, should I identify such a past influences.

Other than this, I invite you to share and copy any content, to the benefit of intellectual debate and the benefit of individuals and groups, without restriction, other than it be used for constructive purpose, in the wider context of my writing.

Should you wish to use any material presented here 'as is', I ask that you then make reference to myself and the web site. The 'Reading Date' would be a useful 'publishing date' for the Current Edition. 1980 is the core publishing date for most of the basic ideas and theory (unless stated otherwise).

This 'Reading Date' may be an important part of this 'reference', as the document (by its 'internet fluid' nature) will be constantly changing and this may affect meaning and interpretation, for those following up on such a reference at a later date.

Thank you for your cooperation.

TRC. eMail: terry.couchman@visitweb.org