Anya Plutynski

Mental health and its promotion have become a pervasive concern. With so many calling to attend to the issue of mental health, it seems a ripe moment to ask: What exactly is this thing called “mental health”? Does psychotherapy promote mental health, and how does one know? “Making Mental Health” uses the tools of integrative history and philosophy of science to address these questions, as well as the scholar's training as a clinician. The project has two goals: a historical and philosophical exploration of the emergence of psychotherapy, and how this clinical practice informed and was informed by shifting theories and explanations of “mental health,” and “evidence-based” practice. Second, the aim is to provide an account of the epistemology of psychotherapeutic practice.