Melanie Meng Xue: Women and Asylums

Seminar
This event has now finished.
  • Date and time: Wednesday 7 May 2025, 1pm to 2pm
  • Location: In-person only
    A/EW105, Alcuin East Wing, Campus West, University of York (Map)
  • Audience: Open to staff, students
  • Admission: Free admission, booking not required

Event details

Author:  Melanie Meng Xue (LSE)

Abstract: During the nineteenth century, England experienced a rapid expansion of mental asylums: both the number of institutions and the patient population rose sharply. Drawing on the complete British population censuses, I document asylum residents’ characteristics and confirm that women were disproportionately represented. To explain this gender imbalance, I analyze more than 140,000 admission records and show that gender-specific social and economic factors heavily shaped commitments. Leveraging the Married Women’s Property Act of 1882 as a natural experiment, I further demonstrate that giving married women greater control over their assets reduced reported mental-health disabilities.

Host: Andrea Papadia (York)