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Social psychological stigma of mental illness: public stigma and self stigma
Essays on stigma in mental health
Essays on stigma in mental health
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Stigma is a universal concept that many patients with severe illnesses experience as they face society. Stigmatization particularly affects patients who display traces of their illness either by scars or noticeable treatment side effects, which they feel negatively impacts their self-worth. In Frank’s narrative At the Will of The Body (2002), Frank shared his personal experience of cancer, which included several incidents where he had felt stigmatized as a result of his disease. Throughout this paper, I will be analyzing the concept of stigma relevant to Frank’s illness experience. Frank’s illness experience will be further analyzed through three attributes of the concept of stigma. I shall also present nursing interventions specific to Frank’s illness experience. Through careful analysis, I will explore transformative learning strategies that can be implemented to enhance my practice as a future nurse. Concepts and Attributes Defined I chose to explore the concept of stigma in the context of Frank’s illness experience because I felt that this theme was strong in the narrative At the Will of The Body. Bananno and Esmaeli (2012) defined stigma as a classification that is caused by specific disfigurements, separating those who have them from the perceived normal members of society. For Frank, this stigma was a sign on his body, which marked him as an unclean and threatening entity (Frank, 2002). The description of stigma presented by both Frank (2002) and Bananno and Esmaeli (2012) evidently indicate that stigma is a multidimensional concept. The concept of stigma contains multiple aspects, such as personal and societal aspects. The personal aspect is expressed through bodily disfigurements or blemishes on the body of the ill in... ... middle of paper ... ...e nurse’s neglect of his concerns confirmed his stigma and made him feel of less importance. Gary (as cited in Trossman, 2011) indicated that nurses should be providing their patients with patient-centered care while communicating with them. In the future, I can further relate my new knowledge of the effects of stigma in my clinical practice by providing individualized care to my patients, especially when they express their personal concerns. Conclusion After careful analysis of the concept of stigma, it is clear that this concept is significant throughout Frank’s illness experience. The social and individual aspects of stigma unquestionably holds a seminal effect on an individuals overall interpretation of their illness. Assisting patients in increased involvement to sustain a positive self-identity is an effective approach in overcoming their perceived stigma.
On November 17th approximately 30 people and I congregated to the OSU College of Nursing to watch The Anonymous People, a documentary film about American’s who are living in long-term recovery from alcohol and other drug addiction. The film addressed the stigma related to alcoholics and drug addicts, including their experiences to the track of recovery. Applicable to what we have discussed in class, I was able to understand more into the healthcare stigma and healthcare disparities that people around us deal with daily. The eye opening video provided an example into the lives of people, famous or not, being mistreated and judged due to their life choices. As a group frequently misunderstood, the film tries to teach the audience to a new view
through the illness not being identified as an illness, is a social stigma and inadequate
This stereotype contributes to the stigma individuals’ face and encourages social exclusion and intolerance, especially in schizophrenia (Ray & Brooks Dollar, 2014). Ken sought out help and went to the emergency room because he recognized he was severely depressed. There, the doctor promised he would not be put in restraints, yet when he was taken to the hospital, he was placed in restraints because it was company policy (Steele & Berman, 2001). Due the stigma that individuals with mental illness are violent, Ken was not treated fairly (Stuart & Arboleda-Florez, 2012). Stuart and Arboleda-Florez (2012) are very credible authors to be writing on the effects of stigma in mental health. Both authors have experience in psychiatry, combatting stigma and mental health issues.
Clients experienced stigma in regards to three factors including discrimination, stigma related to disclosure of their mental illness, and rejection of any positive aspects regarding their mental illness. When clients experienced any type of stigma mentioned above, this caused a regression in their treatment. This study found that 89.7% of the participants in the study experienced discrimination for their diagnosis, and 88.4% felt uncomfortable when disclosing their diagnosis (2015). This article supports Rosenhan’s findings that suggest the inpatient staff members’ attitudes and preconceived notions about the psuedopatients and patients created an environment that cultivated depersonalization. Treating those with a diagnosis as “insane” and avoiding contact (or abusing the patients in much more severe circumstances) caused clients to experience stigma and therefore regress in their treatment (1973), much like the participants in the study conducted in San
Throughout her presentation, she explains how public stigmas, once again, cause label avoidance pushing many who need help away from treatment. She then goes on to explain how these stereotyped behaviors cause discrimination towards people with a mental illness from employment to housing which only leads to the creation of more stigmas. Finally, she states how the impact of stigmas is associated with the reduction of self-esteem, overall poor health, and problems with interpersonal relationships (Willits). By using this presentation I am able to connect what we have learned about mental health stigmas to my article. First off, for example, Morris explains how psychiatric units invoke people to imagine a frightening place where insane patients are strapped down and poked and prodded for care (Morris). This stereotypical idea relates to how Willits described general stereotypes associated with mental illness such as crazy and dangerous (Willits). On top of that, Willits explained how these stigmas have negative consequences for patients (Willits). This relates to Morris’s explanation on how the stigma around institutions has caused these units to shut down forcing many people to be homeless or live in jail
“Stigma is a “collection of negative attitudes, beliefs, thoughts, and behaviors that influence the individual, or general public, fear, reject, or avoid, be prejudiced, and discriminate people” (Varcarolis, 2013, p. 18). Mentally ill patients are encountered in all settings. Many of these setting are non-psychiatric in nature and are staffed by nurses that do not have extensive training or comfort in dealing with seriously mentally ill patients. Individual stigmas and attitudes that nurses have regarding mental illness can have a direct effect on the level of care given to these patients. These stigmatizing attitudes toward the mentally ill can have very harmful effects on the individual themselves and their families. The negative attitudes result in social isolation, reduced opportunities, and the lack of self worth (Varcarolis, 2013, p. 18). Nursing graduates need to understand that psychiatric patients appear everywhere, not just in psychiatric settings. Knowing how to properly and appropriately care for them is vital to giving the best care each patient deserves. The challenges of social stigmas about mental illnesses affect graduate nurses in developing a therapeutic relationship, and need to adjust and implement appropriate nursing interventions.
Broad prejudices against people with illnesses survive at the threshold of the new millennium. Those prejudices, infecting those familiar and unfamiliar with the severity of functional illnesses determine the way “non-ill” people view and act toward people living and working with illnesses. Many people, however, still fail to recognize the pervasive and damaging nature of “affliction” prejudice.
There are many different ways to define stigma, but there are many common themes. Stigma is an attribute assigned to a person which sets them apart from others and casts them in a negative light (Link et al.; Byrne, 2000). This negative light leads to many other issues in a stigmatized person’s life. One is self confidence;
Mental illnesses are common today and the stigmas that follow behind it. Stigmas can be created anybody including families, friends, co-workers, or even someone you don 't know. A stigma that is created usually sets a person apart from everybody else such as sexual orientation, gender or physical disabilities. A person with a mental illness is frequently labeled as a stereotype which can create negative attitudes.
These misconceptions of mental illness lead to stigma. The most commonly used definition of stigma comes from sociologist Erving Goffman in 1963. He defined stigma as an "attribute that is deeply discrediting" and individuals who bear the stigma are reduced, "from a whole and regular person to a tainted, discounted one" (Goffman 5). Edward Jones’s book, Social Stigma: The Psychology of Marked Relationships, analyzes the many social mistreatments, of which stigmatized individuals are susceptible. The book first analyzes the origin of stigma, proposing they are derived from abnormal or “negative” attributes. The book goes on to say that stigmatized individuals often conceal their condition if they can, such is the case with mental illness. There
People with a mental illness are often feared and rejected by society. This occurs because of the stigma of mental illness. The stigma of mental illness causes the perception of individuals with mental illnesses to be viewed as being dangerous and insane. They are viewed and treated in a negative way. They are almost seen as being less of a human. The stigma affects the individual with a mental illness in such a cruel way. The individual cannot even seek help without the fear of being stigmatized by their loved ones or the general public. The stigma even leads to some individuals developing self-stigma. This means having a negative perception of one’s self, such as viewing one’s self as being dangerous. The worst part is that the effects of
Unfortunately, many individuals in our community today are stigmatized because of their mental or emotional disability. Stigma is a mark of disrespect against a person diagnosed with a mental illness. This practice has gotten worse over time, with false and demeaning stereotypes developing for these people. Social stigma can affect the lives of these people more that one could even imagine. To solve this problem, we as a society need to stop labeling people based on their mental illness diagnosis.
It is important before continuing to outline what the term stigma means and what it entails in terms of the discussion in this essay. According to Goffman a stigma is a feeling put on an “attribute that is deeply discrediting, and that reduces the bearer from a whole and unusual person to a tainted discounted one, “(Link et al. 2004). The stigma process tends to discredit whoever it is targeting through the use of labeling, stereotyping, and separating. Once a stigma has become so great that it has created an “us” vs. “them” separation affect “those targeted start to believe and accept the stereotypes,”(Link et al. 2004) regardless of how fal...
According to Goffman, stigma does not occur in isolation, it is the individual, the normal and the wise who are stigmatized. The word stigma actually refers to a tattoo mark or brand on Greek slaves who had been polluted and so should avoid public places. For Goffman, stigma can be perceived as a social or individual attribute to devalue and discredit in a particular way. To him, the stigmatized individual is literally isolated from all social acceptances. The relationships associated with the individual described to be stigmatized in the lens of Goffman can be categorized into three groups: the stigmatized, the normal and the wise. The stigmatized refers to the individual bearing the stigma, the normal relating those who do not bear the stigma and the wise describing those individuals among the normal who the stigmatized identifies as wise. Even though HIV/AIDS was not a focus of Goffman’s theory of stigma and discrimination, elements of it can be highly grounded in it. HIV/AIDS
Paul identified the most challenging aspect of his work is the stigma of mental health. He worries about the increasing number of claims of depression that are being made. He believes that the mental health stigma is getting better, but the progress is slow. He hopes that people will stop telling one another to “pull up your boot straps and you’ll be okay” but rather, he hopes that we’ll learn how to strengthen instead of undermine those with depression.