Northern Ireland: Society Under Siege - Softcover

Fields, Rona M.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0878558063 ISBN 13: 9780878558063

Publisher: Routledge, 1980

Synopsis

The troubles in Ireland are not new. They have taken a heavy toll in lives and, perhaps more importantly, in psychological health. From testing and interviews with the children, women, and men of Northern Ireland beginning in 1969, Fields has developed a case study of the long-term effects of stress on a population. She identifies certain social control mechanisms which produce a mixture of chaos and docility in the troubled North and argues that England has established these in order to destroy the identity of the people—a process of "psychological genocide."

This volume applies social-psychological theory to a concrete and ongoing situation in a way that is illuminating for the general reader and for the specialist. Fields has done what might appear obvious: to find out the effects of stress on a population by going to that population and observing what their lives are like. The remarkable fact is that until now, no one has done so.

About this title

About the Author:

Rona M. Fields has been a faculty member and a research fellow at George Washington University, Howard University, and George Mason University, as well as additional universities abroad. She is a Past President of the District of Columbia Psychological Association and a fellow of the American Psychological Association. Her books include Martyrdom: The Psychology, Theology, and Politics of Self-Sacrifice, Against Violence Against Women: The Case for Gender as a Protected Class, and Northern Ireland: Society Under Siege.

Review:

"A wide-ranging and perceptive book .... A significant thrust and contribution of this book is Fields' discussion of psychological and social control procedures and practices .... (Fields') report is a challenge to humanity and an indictment of English patricianism, racism, and imperialism."

—Alfred McClung Lee

"Dr. Rona Fields is a brave and deeply compassionate human being, a committed researcher who cannot be intimidated by gunmen, English soldiers, bigots, ferocious politicians, or the horrors of confronting human suffering in dreadful forms. This valiant woman deserves international praise and recognition for her unflinching study of a tragic society."  —Dennis Clark, National Catholic Reporter

About this edition

• Publisher: Routledge
• Publication date: 1980
• ISBN 10: 0878558063
• ISBN 13: 9780878558063
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 284