Northern Ireland: Society Under Siege

The troubles in Ireland are not new. They have taken a heavy toll in lives and, perhaps more importantly, in psychological health. This book is not concerned with events in themselves, although it includes historical analysis of the conflict in Northern Ireland. It does attempt to discover the human effects of long-term conflicts such as those occurring in Ireland. From testing and interviews with the children, women, and men of Northern Ireland beginning in 1969, the author has developed a case study of the long-term effects of stress on a population. She identifies certain social control mechanisms that produce a mixture of chaos and docility in the troubled North and argues that England has established these in order to destroy the identity of the people—a process she calls "psychological genocide.", Northern Ireland: Society Under Siege applies social-psychological theory to a concrete and ongoing situation in a way that is illuminating for the general reader and for the specialist. Dr. Fields has done what might appear obvious: find out the effects of stress on a population by going to that population and observing what their lives are like. The remarkable fact is, however, that until now no one has done so., ...a wide-ranging and perceptive book.... A significant thrust and contribution of this book is Fields' discussion of psychological and social control procedures and practices....(Fields') report is a challenge to humanity and an indictment of English patricianism, racism, and imperialism. Alfred McClung Lee, Dr. Rona Field is a brave and deeply compassionate human being, a committed researcher who cannot be intimidated by gunmen, English soldiers, bigots, ferocious politicians, or the horrors of confronting human suffering in dreadful forms. This valiant woman deserves international praise and recognition for the unflinching study of a tragic society. Dennis Clark, National Catholic Reporter

About the Author

Rona M. Fields, formerly associate professor of psychology at Clark University, is a psychologist and sociologist who has focused her research on social prejudice and violence in many different countries. While associate director of the National Center on the Study of Corporal Punishment and Its Alternatives, her 1973 report on the prevailing conditions in Northern Ireland was censored and withdrawn from the British market. Northern Ireland: Society Under Siege is an expanded analysis of that research., Alfred McClung Lee is professor emeritus of sociology and anthropology, Brooklyn College, City University of New York, and visiting scholar at Drew University. Dr. Lee's research has emphasized the study of conflict, with special reference to the Irish.