On the Registration of All "Mental Defectives" (1931)

JF Ptak Science Books   Post 2702

Here's a title that should stop you: 

How very special.

Of course, it was 1931, and the Eugenicists were running free and easy, the stiff wind of their convictions running freely through their imaginary hair...and what would we all do with this gathering of information on mental defectives¹ once that was done? And what was the definition of mental defective, anyway? thirdly of course--what do we do with the mental defectives once this energy of definition and collection had been done?  well, a new group would come to power in two years' time from the publication of this article, and in their own right they did these things and then decided to kill many of the people that they cataloged. That's one example. I'm not saying that the well-meaning people like the author of this paper would be anywhere near this horrible, not at all; I just don't know why they would want to gather this information.  There wasn't a discussion of collection of treatment of these people, just their registration in one large database. Every time I see in this pamphlet the statement on the need for such a registry, I expect to see why--but that never comes, only the repetition of a phrase like "that a central registry for mental defectives is desirable, and that it should be organized and operated by an established state department" and its variations.

Finally, at the end of the short 14-page pamphlet, in the final paragraph, something appears close to explaining the "why" issue--but it winds up being a little tautological, stating that the need for gathering the names of all mental defectives is "to make available authorized agencies and individuals definite information on known mental defectives"

Basically--at least so far as this pamphlet explains--the reason for gathering all of these names into a system of state-wide databases is to have the names in state-wide databases. 

Notes:

1. Mental defective seems to make its first appearance in English in 1899, according to the Oxford English Dictionary: 

d. Designating a person suffering from an illness or impairment of the mind. Esp. in mental case,mental defective.A use now increasingly avoided

1899   Appletons' Pop. Sci. Monthly Apr. 747 (title)    Mental defectives and social welfare.

1904   Lancet 17 Sept. 838/1   The Home Secretary..has at last been impressed with the total inadequacy of the provision made for..mental incapables.

1908   Lancet 12 Sept. 813/2   Dr. W. C. S. Clapham..had many suspected mental cases sent to his out-patient department.

By 1960 it was seen in the U.K. that "the most important change in terminology made by the new Act [sc. the Mental Health Act, 1959] is that the expressions ‘mental deficiency’ and ‘mental defectives’ should be abolished... ‘Mental disorder’ is introduced as a new term covering all forms of mental ill health."--Oxford English Dictionary ("Mental")

Source: Neil Dayton, "The Necessity for Central Registration of Mental Defectives", published as an offprint by the National Committee for Mental Hygiene, NYC, 1931, and printed by the William Boyd Printing Company, Albany, NY.