Psychiatry Research EG

The first position statement of the psychiatric profession concerning ethical issues was the Declaration of Hawaii. This was drafted in 1977 to help psychiatrists in conflicts of loyalty in contemporary societies. A major trigger was the political misuse of psychiatry in countries such as the former Soviet Union, Romania and South Africa, that came to public awareness during the early 1970s. The very first paragraph of the Declaration is concerned with the ethical problem of the political misuse of psychiatric concepts, knowledge and techniques.