This book presents a new relational approach to ‘mental disorder’ which argues that psychological and emotional distress is inherently constituted by self, other and world, and puts forward this case on philosophical, clinical and moral grounds.

The central thesis of the book is situated in historical and philosophical context, addressing the dominant model(s) of mind & ‘mental disorder.’ It puts forward the case that these models rest on outmoded and increasingly unethical conceptual grounds, which cannot properly account for the decisive influence of our worlds on our psychological and emotional distress. In light of the current mental health crisis, the book argues that we have a moral imperative to radically revision mental health care in these terms and situates this in a broad and exciting paradigm shift within the social sciences.