The Micropolitics of Trouble in a Psychiatric Board and Care Facility

Abstract

This article examines a variety of micropolitical processes characteristic of a psychiatric board and care facility. Within the relatively “loose” organizational structure, troubles and their subsequent handling by staff become particularly critical determinants of resident fates. Staff understandings of and response to resident troubles are shaped by the nature and level of staff support and by the distinctive institutional reputations residents acquire with staff members. The article examines the interactional processes through which support and reputations are negotiated, and suggests that one consequence of these processes is to exaggerate residents' sense of the subjectively determined and unpredictable character of their local environment.