Civil Commitment of the Mentally Ill: An Overview
- 1 March 1986
- journal article
- research article
- Published by SAGE Publications in The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science
- Vol. 484 (1) , 28-41
- https://doi.org/10.1177/0002716286484001003
Abstract
This article discusses historical themes that led to the civil commitment reforms of the sixties and seventies. The changes in the substantive criteria for commitment are analyzed and critiqued. The author believes that the present criteria tend to focus so specifically on various external indicia of mental illness that they render commitment difficult for many seriously ill patients. An alternative commitment scheme is discussed.Keywords
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