Reviewing the third edition of a work that has been a standard textbook in several countries for nearly 20 years seems at first to be hardly necessary. This is particularly so when it still seems to have no serious rival. But preparing a ‘new edition’ may mean anything from correcting a few spelling mistakes to the production of what is virtually a new book. Eaton says that his work has been heavily revised, ‘reflecting what I have learned in the ensuing 15 years’, and that substantial additions have been made to each chapter. This makes a strong case for discarding well-thumbed copies of the second edition.

The relationship between sociology and psychiatry has mostly been an uneasy one. From the 1960s, under strong Marxist influences such as that of Foucault (who was really a philosopher), sociologists mostly tended to ride the ‘anti-psychiatry’ bandwagon. They denounced psychiatrists as agents of social control who were ignorant or dismissive of their patients' social context and of cultural influences on psychological disorders. Eaton was different, in coming from the ‘mental hygiene’ tradition and, in the footsteps of Morton Kramer, having an outstanding knowledge of the epidemiology of mental disorders. This difference from mainstream sociology can be seen particularly in his clear, jargon-free style as well as in the lack of doctrinal influence.

Among psychiatrists, the target readership of this text will be senior trainees, but consultants may wish to refresh their minds with it for continuing professional development; social work students and those doing advanced nursing courses would also find it very useful, although not necessarily recommended by their teachers. With the closure of many mental hospitals, specialist psychiatric libraries may now be much fewer, but libraries for health professionals should certainly find room for it. It is very adequately illustrated with figures and tables.

The most important sections include: the social construction of bizarre behaviour (e.g. mental disorder in non-Western culture); the methods of epidemiology; stress and depressive disorder; social selection and drift; theories of collective behaviour; and diffusion of therapeutic innovations. Eaton concludes that a most important role of the sociological framework is in showing how we, as a group, come to define a given emotion or behaviour as important. Although mental disorder is defined at the level of the individual, ‘insanity’ is defined at the level of society. He urges an end to polemics about genes v. environment, since the social environment provides a powerful tool for understanding the effects of genes on behaviour. This integrative view is a valuable one.