Experiment Perilous

In 1951, author Renee C. Fox became part of a team composed of metabolic experts, psychiatrists, social workers, and a psychologist who were to pool their methods, seeking understanding of the “human organism’s response to life stress”. Ms. Fox, a doctoral student in sociology, became an active part of life on Ward-F Second for a part of 1951-52. The patients suffer from a wide range of disorders. The Metabolic Research Group is a team of young physicians who are not only treating these patients, but also pursuing research on them, seeking cures. There is tension, stress, ambivalence, and differing degrees of personal investment. The report describes a small but important part of the medical world; its insights are particularly valuable for students and teachers in social work, medicine, and allied fields.