Shifting meaning of asylum

Aim(s). This paper offers an expanded way of looking at the idea of asylum from the perspective of Soja's conceptualization of Thirdspace (Blackwell P ublishers, Oxford 1996). Implications for research are discussed. Background. Soja proposes a different way to think about space. He writes n ot of dialectics but instead of trialectics which reconstructs space. Soja rejects the binarism of either/or logic about space suggesting a creative c ombination of both/and also. In this instance, the binary logic of either h ospital or community asylum is opened to new possibilities of thinking abou t the space of asylum. Conclusions. The value of hearing the stories of those living with long-ter m mental illness is to obtain an emic perspective of their space of asylum.