Academic Profile

Jonathan Okoe is a doctoral (PhD) student in the History Department at the University of Texas at Austin. His current research examines the history of psychiatry and therapeutic pluralism in colonial and postcolonial West Africa (Ghana), focusing on how medical knowledge functions as a tool of governance. His dissertation will examine imperial lunacy in Greater Asante and its links to the British Empire during the colonial period. He will be drawing heavily on interviews, oral tradition, and archival materials. The dissertation will take an interdisciplinary approach.

Jonathan’s master’s research paper at Virginia Tech examined the politics of licensure for traditional health practitioners in Kumase and Ghana during the colonial period, specifically between 1934 and 1957, and was titled, “Ayaresa: The Licensure of Native Physicians in Kumase and Greater Asante During the Colonial Period, 1934-1957.” He also received his bachelor’s degree in history from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumase, Ghana. His undergraduate research addressed the challenges related to accommodation facilities for mentally ill individuals in Kumase and across Ghana.

Interests:

18th- to 21st-Century African History & the British West African Empire and topics related to the following: Health, Medicine, Science, Technology, Medical Anthropology, and Digital Humanities

My CV