Biological Paternalism in China Essay (Article)

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Key Research Questions

The article written by Ma (2020) and titled “Biopolitical Paternalism and Its Maternal Supplements: Kinship Correlates of Community Mental Health Governance in China” seeks to answer the question concerning mental health issues in Chinese families. Namely, the article inspects whether the state-developed and state-funded program aimed at reinforcing family values and molding modern Chinese families serves its main function. Issues such as covert medication of mentally ill patients and their home confinement are explored in the study.

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Key Findings of the Study and Research Implications

In the course of the research, several troubling trends have been discovered. Ma (2020) refers to the specified phenomena as “biopolitical paternalism” and “maternal supplements” (p. 290). The author clarifies that the presence of violence toward mentally ill family members, as well as their medicalization, is very frequent in the Chinese community, which calls for a significant social change (Ma, 2020). Home confinement of mentally ill family members represents a particularly challenging issue that is quite difficult to identify and address due to low transparency levels within the Chinese community.

The need for greater transparency and openness, as well as the need to reconsider the current framework for tending to the needs of mentally ill patients in China, are the main implications of the study. The described research outcomes inform the further study of the strategies for improving the existing policies, as well as the attitudes toward mental illness among Chinese citizens. Moreover, the research has helped to discover an underlying issue of gender inequality in Chinese society, where women occupy much lower positions in the Chinese social and familial hierarchies. Therefore, seeking ways of subverting the specified perception of women as lower-class citizens needs to be seen as the focus for the next study addressing the subject matter. Overall, the research findings bear major significance for Chinese society.

Key Anthropological Concepts

The paper by Ma (2020) incorporates quite a several anthropological terms and notions. The focus on the anthropological aspect of the issue helps to relate the observed social phenomena to the history of China and the sociocultural context in which the described problems occur. Ma (2020) pays especially close attention to anthropological notions such as culture and society, as well as kinship and family. The four concepts above constitute the basis for Ma’s (2020) argument regarding the problem of mental health management in Chinese families.

Moreover, the issue of gender roles and the restrictions imposed on the understanding of women’s needs as a result of the existing gender hierarchy within Chinese families have been studied thoroughly in the paper. The article mentions that the propensity toward feminizing the struggles that women have leads to the development of extremely harmful stereotypes, such as the idea that motherly compassion is the manifestation of female weakness (Ma, 2020). The described regressive attitudes restrict the opportunities for the development of gender relationships within Chinese society.

Ideas for Future Study

The article by Ma (2020) has prompted a range of interesting ideas to explore and issues to address, especially in the context of Chinese society and the related gender stereotyping. The strategies for changing people’s attitudes toward mental health issues, as well as relationships between family members, in the Chinese cultural environment, can become the subject of future research. The specified exploration of opportunities for change may lead to insightful discoveries and incite alterations in relationships within Chinese families.

Reference

Ma, Z. (2020). Biopolitical paternalism and its maternal supplements: Kinship correlates of community mental health governance in China. Cultural Anthropology, 35(2), 290-316. Web.

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IvyPanda. (2022) 'Biological Paternalism in China'. 7 February.

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IvyPanda. 2022. "Biological Paternalism in China." February 7, 2022. https://ivypanda.com/essays/biological-paternalism-in-china/.

1. IvyPanda. "Biological Paternalism in China." February 7, 2022. https://ivypanda.com/essays/biological-paternalism-in-china/.


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IvyPanda. "Biological Paternalism in China." February 7, 2022. https://ivypanda.com/essays/biological-paternalism-in-china/.

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