Narration and Care

PRIN project 2022

Principal investigator
Marina Guglielmi

Associated investigators
Daniela Adorni, Vinzia Fiorino

Host institutions
University of Cagliari, University of Torino, University of Pisa

Start date
18 October 2023

The project “Narration and Care. The deinstitutionalization of the asylum system in Italy: history, imaginary, planning (from 1961 to today)” focuses on Italy’s mental health system transformation post Law 180, spanning the last sixty years. It aims to reassess a rich cultural heritage of debates and narratives related to mental illness, aligning with three keywords: inclusion, deinstitutionalization, and training.

Social inclusion is urgent today, addressing not only mental illness but also issues from migration, refugee reception, and post-pandemic youth problems. The process of deinstitutionalization in Italian psychiatric hospitals reflects a preference for territorial assistance over inadequate internment policies, a Basaglia’s vision which the project emphasises. It also highlights the need for training health workers beyond medical discourse, incorporating knowledge of asylums’ social history and deinstitutionalization.