The paper aims to describe and analyze the process of inserting the issue of violence in the legal frameworks of the Brazilian public politics on mental health, with a view to contribute to the identification of challenges and dilemmas in this area. We conducted a documental analysis of laws, decrees and orders issued by the Health Ministry and official publications of this Coordination of Mental Health Ministry issued from January 2001 to December 2011. We observed the consolidation of three trends in these documents: Violence and psychiatric institution (2001-2003), marked by the consolidation of parameters guiding deinstitutionalization policies and ensuring the rights of individuals with mental disorders; violence, the territory and its demands (2004-2008), where attention to social vulnerabilities and integral health care are identified; violence and the challenge of harmful use of alcohol and other drugs (2009-2011), showing that risk situations and violence associated with this use sharpen tensions between conservative political forces in the field of social policies. We conclude that mental health policies were adapted to the emerging social problems in the country, with a view to enhancing the quality of life and prevention of violence.
violence; mental health; mental health policies; document analysis; Brazil
