本书从比较视角和历史维度研究作为一种帝国现象的恐慌，特别是传染病，如霍乱、鼠疫、流感，以及20 世纪末新出现的传染病等引发的恐慌。通过对19世纪初的东亚到21世纪的美国等一系列案例研究，本书探索了西方政府机构、政策制定者、规划者和其他权威机构为理解、应对和消除由传染病和其他危机引发的恐慌所做的尝试。本书还研究了从电报到医疗技术和公共卫生等多种技术对传播和约束“恐慌”信息所起的作用，考察了帝国复杂关系网络和恐慌之间的关系，并得出疾病威胁会产生特定焦虑和集体恐慌的结论。 本书重点关注从19 世纪早期到现在发生的恐慌反应的连续性和非连续性及其阐释。正如艾伦·莱斯特在第一章“帝国与恐慌之地”中指出，每一章节从不同方面研究恐慌：鸦片战争前的广东地形、英属印度的山间避暑小镇、流行疾病映射图、实施检疫措施控制恐慌和病毒传播等，主要集中在大英帝国和英语世界，涉及南非、中国香港、印度、新西兰和美国这些国家和地区。仅仅关注英国这一殖民帝国是本书的局限，但本书旨在对帝国恐慌进行初步概述，为今后更深入、更具比较性和包容性的研究做铺垫。

Imperial Contagions complicates common historical narratives portraying a straightforward shift from older, enclavist models of colonial medicine to newer pursuits of prevention and treatment among indigenous populations and European residents. In a series of essays, the volume shows colonial medicine was not a homogeneous, "on the ground" phenomenon but rather a practice rife with tensions and contradictions. Indigenous elites contested and appropriated Western medical knowledge and practices for their own purposes, while colonial policies contained contradictory and cross-cutting impulses. Contributors ultimately challenge the long-standing belief that colonial regimes uniformly regulated indigenous bodies and that colonial medicine served as a "tool of empire."

Epidemics have played a critical role in shaping modern Asia. Encompassing two centuries of Asian history, Robert Peckham explores the profound impact that infectious disease has had on societies across the region: from India to China and the Russian Far East. The book tracks the links between biology, history, and geopolitics, highlighting infectious disease's interdependencies with empire, modernization, revolution, nationalism, migration, and transnational patterns of trade. By examining the history of Asia through the lens of epidemics, Peckham vividly illustrates how society's material conditions are entangled with social and political processes, offering an entirely fresh perspective on Asia's transformation.

Epidemics have played a critical role in shaping modern Asia. Encompassing two centuries of Asian history, Robert Peckham explores the profound impact that infectious disease has had on societies across the region: from India to China and the Russian Far East. The book tracks the links between biology, history, and geopolitics, highlighting infectious disease's interdependencies with empire, modernization, revolution, nationalism, migration, and transnational patterns of trade. By examining the history of Asia through the lens of epidemics, Peckham vividly illustrates how society's material conditions are entangled with social and political processes, offering an entirely fresh perspective on Asia's transformation.