Power, Interest and Psychology: Elements of a Social Materialist Understanding of Distress, by David Smail, was published twenty years ago this month. It started life as an internet publication, Power, Responsibility and Freedom. David was attracted by the possibilities the internet afforded, of being freed from the constraints of profit and copyright, and also that the text could be interactive, and respond to the views of readers. Ultimately, he decided that the medium did not generate as much dialogue as he had hoped, and there were other drawbacks such as demands for constant updates. He therefore resorted to the hard copy, Power, Interest and Psychology.
The central argument of the book is that human conduct, and in particular psychological and emotional distress, cannot be understood by an analysis of individual will, intention or cognition. Conventional therapeutic psychology suggests that we are essentially self-creating and able (with a little help from a therapist) to heal ourselves of the emotional ills that beset us. This kind of view reflects the wishful thinking and make-believe that are necessary for the success of modern consumer capitalism, but it does not reflect the way things are. The alternative set out in the book, explains how our experience of ourselves as well as much of our conduct is accounted for in terms of the social operation of power and interest. A framework is established for making sense of our emotional distress as the outcome of environmental pressures.
Midlands Psychology Group 