In Australia, there is increasing attention being paid to the promotion of mental health and the prevention of serious mental disorder by policymakers, funders, academics and service providers. This has required a shift in thinking to focus on health and well being, not just on illness and treatment. The National Action Plan for Promotion, Prevention and Early Intervention for Mental Health 2000 is a national framework endorsed by the National Mental Health Working Group and the National Public Health Partnership. The Action Plan 2000 identifies the important relationship between work and emotional and social well being and regards it as a priority area for action. The present edited volume on mental health and work seeks to address this significant issue from a variety of perspectives. It is hoped that this volume will increase knowledge and understanding of the inextricable relationship between work and mental health and influence the development and implementation of effective strategies to promote mental health and prevent mental disorders. The original intent for this book was to consider the workplace as a target for universal approaches to mental health promotion and to record a range of successful national programs. What emerged from discussion was a need to consider work more broadly than workers and workplaces, and to therefore consider mental health and its promotion in the context of work in more depth. What has resulted is a rich archive of contemporary issues surrounding work in Australia, as well as seminal work from abroad. (Contains references at the end of each chapter.) (GCP)