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An ethnomethodological analysis of the use of seclusion
Author(s) -
Mason Tom
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
journal of advanced nursing
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.948
H-Index - 155
eISSN - 1365-2648
pISSN - 0309-2402
DOI - 10.1046/j.1365-2648.1997.00411.x
Subject(s) - seclusion , rationalization (economics) , ethnomethodology , psychology , presentation (obstetrics) , social psychology , psychiatry , medicine , sociology , epistemology , social science , philosophy , radiology
The use of seclusion in psychiatric practice is a contentious issue. This paper reports on an ethnomethodological approach to understanding the decision‐making process in the use of seclusion. Through first‐level and second‐level reasoning analysis, three themes emerged which underscored the subjects' rationalization process. These were: (a) mechanistic searching, (b) frame conflict, and (c) asylum status. This research suggests that the decision to use seclusion is based on a complex interplay of cultural and organizational factors rather than due to the presentation of symptoms by the patient.