Psychiatry and the Human Condition, 1st ed. 2022 A Scientific Biography of Silvano Arieti (1914–1981) Springer Biographies Series

This book is the result of extensive archival research conducted on the Collection ?Silvano Arieti Papers? held in the Manuscript Division of the Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. It offers readers the first scientific biography of the renowned Italian-born psychiatrist Silvano Arieti, who in 1939 emigrated to the United States, where he gained fame and recognition for his work on schizophrenia. In 1975, the second edition of his book, Interpretation of Schizophrenia, received the National Book Award in Science.

The book has been cast as a twofold journey: an exploration of the life of a psychiatrist and scientist and an overview of twentieth century psychiatry and its significant issues, debates, and transformations. Readers will find useful insights for a better understanding of psychiatry as a discipline capable of portraying the complexity of human nature. 

Methodologically, her focus has been archival research on primary and unpublished sources. She has worked at archival collections not only in Italian scientific Institutions but also at the Oskar Diethelm Library, Archives and Manuscript Collections, Institute for the History of Psychiatry, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York (2002); the Butler Library of Columbia University, New York (2002); the Welcome Library for the History and Understanding of Medicine, London (2002); the Menninger Foundation Archives, Topeka, Kansas (2003); and the Manuscript Division of the Library of Congress, Washington DC. (2016).

The first biography of a groundbreaking psychiatrist

Includes an in-depth discussion of the scientific foundations of psychiatry

Draws on a wealth of archival material to present the life and achievements of Silvano Arieti