Ihediwa 1

Adannaya Ihediwa
Mrs. Greene
Capstone - 7
3 November 2016

Timed Writing 3

A stigma is a mark of disgrace based off of misconceptions and stereotyping. As a

consequence of the stigma, it is more difficult for those with mental illness to find jobs,
insurance, and housing; they are also isolated from society. Despite these negative effects that
hold the mentally ill back, this stigma can be fought by identifying the source of the stigma and
then eradicating the source.
The stigma of mental illness comes from many different sources, the most influential is
the media. The media is such a powerful tool because it quickly and effectively conveys
information to billions of people. One reason many look to media is to find information,
therefore when the mentally ill are portrayed as homicidal maniacs who need to be feared,
children that should be marveled, or responsible for their illness because they have weak
character (Corrigan & Watson, 2002), the audience believes it. Sadly, these are the only three
ways that those with mental illnesses are portrayed in both print and film media. The media also
proves to have an effect on those in the field of mental health. Heflinger and Hinshaw, leading
child psychologists, performed a study in which mental health professionals were asked to fill
out surveys on prevalent stereotypes within their field. The study revealed that about 75% of the

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survey group treated their mentally ill patients negatively compared to those without mental
illnesses. Heflinger and Hinshaw then went deeper into the study and it revealed that those in the
survey group who watched more T.V. were also more likely to have negative attitudes towards
the mentally ill. Other than the media, another large problem that is perpetuating the stigma is
that most stigma theories have de-emphasized cultural factors and paid little attention to issues
related to human rights and social structures. (Thornicroft, Rose, Sartorius, & Kassam, 2007).
In fact, most research today makes the stigma seem deeply, historically rooted as if it cannot be
changed. Consequently, many conduct studies on the stigma itself rather than its solutions and
how to implement them.
Not only do we need to eradicate the stigma, we need to reverse the stigma, people must
know about the positive side of mental illness (Wig). In order to do so, the cause of the stigma
must be eradicated first; this can easily be done by raising awareness. The most effective way to
raise awareness is through the stigmas biggest perpetrator, the media. This is because the media
targets the same audience that the stigma effects. Additionally, the media is able to reach a broad
age group, including babies watching childrens shows, teenagers on social media, and adults
watching news outlets. These channels are what criminalize the mentally ill, this can be easily
stopped if they focus on specifics rather than generalizing. For example, shortly after the Sandy
Hook massacre it was brought to attention that the suspect may have been mentally ill. Although,
they did not specify which mental illness nor did they specify the severity, there was not even
any evidence to support such claim. Despite this, the audience will react by associating all
mental illnesses with horrific, violent acts. Even the language used in television shows watched
by audiences as young as preschool throw around words like crazy, psycho, lunatic, etc.

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(Greenstein, 2015). Although it is the most effective, fixing how the mentally ill are portrayed in
the media is a long-term solution because the media has already heavily affected a majority of
the current population.
Another solution can be found in the way we ask questions, this alone can make results
more accurate meaning we can easily find out what exactly needs to be fixed. For example,
instead of asking an employer Would you hire someone with mental illness?, ask them Have
you hired someone with mental illness? According to Thornicroft and his colleagues, this
simple change will result in much more accurate data which will help us understand how deep
the stigma actually is. Another effective, short-term solution would be educating the public
firsthand. If mental health professionals were to move beyond teaching psychoeducation in
isolation (at the clinic) to full participation in planned programs of public education" (Byrne),
they would be able to reduce this stigma against mental illness in the mind of the public.
Experienced professionals raising awareness would be extremely effective because not only do
they have facts and statistics as professionals, but they have personal experiences as well. In fact,
Several studies have shown that participation in education programs on mental illness led to
improved attitudes about persons with these problems (Corrigan & Watson, 2002).
Overall, the threat of the stigma of mental illness may be greater than that of the mental
illness itself. This stigma inhibits the mentally ill from being active participants in society simply
because we as a society choose to believe ideas perpetuated by the media. With increased
education and awareness, people will choose to believe facts over stereotypes and the mentally
ill will feel embraced instead of isolated. Awareness can end the stigma.

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Works Cited

Byrne, P. (n.d.). Stigma of mental illness and ways of diminishing it | BJPsych Advances.
Retrieved September 13, 2016.
Corrigan, P. W., & Watson, A. C. (2002, February). Understanding the impact of stigma on
people with mental illness. Retrieved October 11, 2016.
Hinshaw, S. P., & Cicchetti, D. (2000). Stigma and mental disorder: Conceptions of illness,
public attitudes, personal disclosure, and social policy. Development and
Psychopathology, 12(4), 555598.
Greenstein, L. (2015, October 26). NAMI. Retrieved October 30, 2016, from
https://www.nami.org/Blogs/NAMI-Blog/October-2015/9-Ways-to-Fight-Mental-HealthStigma
Thornicroft, G., Rose, D., Sartorius, N., & Kassam, A. (2007). Stigma: Ignorance, prejudice or
discrimination? | The British Journal of Psychiatry. Retrieved October 25, 2016, from
http://bjp.rcpsych.org/content/190/3/192
Wig, N. N. (n.d.). Stigma Against Mental Illness. Indian Psychiatry Journal, 39(3), 187-189.