Social psychiatry is concerned with the interaction of the sociocultural environment and the individual. While recognizing the contribution of psychodynamic factors, it focuses on the impact of the environment on the individual and the reciprocal effect of the individual on the environment. Social psychiatry includes such social problems as migration, acculturation, industrialization, poverty, discrimination, and automation.

Originally published in 1970, the articles in this timely collection are in five different areas: definitions and parameters, epidemiology, community psychiatry, social problems, and animal studies. Dr Kiev has provided an introduction to each section that makes clear the significance of each of the contributions, and places them in a broad perspective.