This paper was authored by two academic professors at a Norway university and it was first published in a psychiatric-health journal. The paper addresses the concept of a risk society. The article seeks to enlighten readers on how the concept of a risk society affects the day-to-day lives of people with mental disabilities. According to the paper, people with mental disabilities indentify the characteristics of a risk society. The paper continues by outlining the characteristics of a risk society. The paper then offers possible solutions to the challenges associated with life in risk societies.
The first thing that strikes me about this article is the ambiguous nature of its title. The title of this article sounds inconclusive as far as its meaning is concerned. Although a title is not necessarily supposed to be grammatically correct, the title of this paper seems grammatically incorrect. As a reader, one finds him/herself repeating it two or more times when trying to grasp its meaning. After reading the whole paper, I think a more appropriate title would have read something like “how to live as mentally disabled patient/person in a risk society”. Another viable option would have been “the life of the mentally disabled in a risk society”. Both of these alternative titles have the ability to evoke a reader’s interest as well as clearly spell out the article’s subject matter.
The paper’s abstract is also quite unsatisfactory. In the first instance, the authors fail to address the contents of the article directly. For example, the methodology used and their source of their motivation would have been valuable inclusions to the abstract. Instead, the first few lines in the paper are personal views of the authors. The abstract should only outline the contents of the paper. The authors should also have ensured the abstract was plain and simple. There is no need of employing complicated jargon in the abstract.
The subject matter of this article is interesting and also relevant to modern day life. The paper covers the concept of this risk society in a very detailed manner. The authors are able to cover all the pertinent information that relates to the concept of a risk society. For instance, the paper addresses how this concept fits into the modern society concept. However, this paper neglects to focus on the relationship between risk society and the mentally disabled. The authors of the article do not take time in establishing this connection and showing its relevance. This relationship is only addressed under the subtitle “Risk and Mental Disabilities” (Eriksson & Hummelvoll, 2012). The passage is very small and it does not focus on the relationship between mental disabilities and risk societies. Instead, the part covers previous studies on mental disabilities. The paper should establish a more explicit relationship between risk societies and mental disabilities.
The method of research used in this paper fails to impress a reader. The authors of this paper chose not to carry out their own research but instead use the available resources. This methodology has previously provided good results. However, in this case this methodology does not work. The main reason why it does not work is because the area of investigation covered by this paper is very specific. Therefore, borrowing from previous research fails to deliver the specific data type that is required for this paper.
This paper has more misgivings than strong points. The authors chose a subject that would appeal to most readers but failed to do all that was necessary to articulate it. The paper requires several changes for it to achieve the standards of a quality scholarly article.
Reference
Eriksson, B. & Hummelvoll, J. (2012). To live as mentally disabled in the risk society. Journal of Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing, 19, 594–602.