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Examining Mental Health through Social Constructionism pp 169–197Cite as

Palgrave Macmillan

The Rhetoric of Evidence-Based Practice

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Part of the book series: The Language of Mental Health ((TLMH))

Abstract

This chapter focuses on the importance of the evidence-based movement in the field of mental distress. In so doing, the chapter takes a critical stance on what constitutes evidence in informing our understanding of mental distress and questions the superiority hierarchies that have been created in the field of medicine. It is acknowledged that within the rhetoric of evidence, randomised controlled trials tend to be in a privileged position in all areas of health.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Leicester, Leicester, UK

    Michelle O’Reilly

  2. Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, USA

    Jessica Nina Lester

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  1. Michelle O’Reilly
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  2. Jessica Nina Lester
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Readings of Interest

Readings of Interest

  • Kiyimba, N., & O’Reilly, M. (2016). The value of using discourse and conversation analysis as evidence to inform practice in counselling and therapeutic interactions. In M. O’Reilly & J. N. Lester (Eds.), The Palgrave handbook of adult mental health. Discourse and conversation studies (pp. 520–539). Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.

  • Morse, J. (2006). The politics of evidence. Qualitative Health Research, 16(3), 395–404.

  • O’Reilly, M., & Kiyimba, N. (2015). Advanced qualitative research: A guide to contemporary theoretical debates. London: Sage.

  • Tanenbaum, S. (2005). Evidence-based practice as mental health policy: Three controversies and a caveat. Health Affairs, 24, 163–174.

  • Timmermans, S., & Berg, M. (2003). The gold standard: The challenge of evidence-based medicine and standardization in health care. Philadelphia: Temple University Press.

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O’Reilly, M., Lester, J.N. (2017). The Rhetoric of Evidence-Based Practice. In: Examining Mental Health through Social Constructionism. The Language of Mental Health. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-60095-6_7

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