The 'three waves' of research in mental health geography: a review and critical commentary.
OBJECTIVE
To consider research conducted in the sub-field of mental health geography, concentrating on work published in English.


METHODS
The paper offers an comprehensive, in-depth and critical reading of the relevant literature on mental health geography since the inception of this subfield of inquiry in the early-1970s.


RESULTS
The paper identifies three 'waves' of research within work on mental health geography. It describes these 'waves' in detail, interprets certain strengths and weaknesses of the first two 'waves', which are well-established, and provides suggestions about important questions to be addressed in a future third 'wave'.


CONCLUSIONS
Much excellent research has so far been undertaken within mental health geography, but there is scope to increase the relevance of this research through widening the focus of research and by being prepared to connect research more directly to mental health policy and politics.
Philo
C
C
Department of Geography and Topographic Science, University of Glasgow, Glasgow G12 9AE, UK. cphilo@geog.gla.ac.uk
Wolch
J
J
D006703:Ill-Housed Persons; D006801:Humans; D008603:Mental Health; D008605:Mental Health Services; D012106:Research