Venereal Disease, Public Health and Social Control: The Scottish Experience in a Comparative Perspective

During the first half of the twentieth century, VD became in many countries a metaphor for the forces of phisical and moral pollution that appeared to threaten social order and racial progress. By reference to some central aspects of the Scottish experience in a comparative perspective, this article seeks to identify the common denominator of anxieties and assumptions which fuelled public health initiatives towards VD and which defined the boundaries within which VD policy options were discussed. In particular, it will explore various dimensions of social control associated with the treatrnent and regulation of VD; the degree to which VD controls and procedures have targetted and stigmatised <