Individual and Community Perceptions of Mental Illness

According to Kring, A.M., Davidson, G.C., Neale, J. M., & Johnson, S.L (2007) Abnormal Psychology (10th Ed.) abnormal behavior is at the center of mental disorders and stigma remains a problem. However, the perceptions concerning mental illness vary within cultural groups and often are linked to not only cultural variations but also socioeconomic differences. According to some studies, groups that have higher levels of education and financial security are more likely to have more accepting attitudes concerning mental illness and treatment compared to groups with limited education and that fall within lower socioeconomic levels. “Treatment” is viewed as a natural course of action among individuals and their families resulting in the destigmatization of the “illness”. This compared to individuals who live in lower socioeconomic communities’ mental illness is often viewed as real or perceived oppression initiated by a society that historically has established systems that perpetuate inequality.

My observation has been that this perception leads to a belief that “true” mental illness does not exist, resulting in the stance that if only there was a level playing field the “illness” would go away. There is also a quiet acceptance within families and a reluctance to acknowledge that “professional” help might be needed. This often becomes a nightmare for the individual and his/her family. Thus the strain the illness places on the family begins to erode familial and community relationships and the individual over time becomes disconnected from the very system that is necessary for recovery and/or healing. Additionally, according to studies that have explored interventions among low-income and communities of color traditional values of therapeutic models often conflict with communities that are more collective in orientation. The end result is the individual becomes invisible within the family and within the broader community. Intervention does not happen and isolation becomes the norm.

Dr. Bobby Wright, (Journal of Pan African studies, vol.2, march 2008) one of the founding fathers of Black psychology suggested that there was a need to develop a therapeutic model that considered the foundations of an Afro-centric system whereby the “community” defined by Dr. Michael Bennett, (The New Chicago: A Social and Cultural Analysis, 2006) is (community of common interest, beyond geographic boundaries and inclusive of religious, cultural, ethnic and social interest groups.)A model that considers the importance of community and brings to bear all the resources within the community to remove the stigma of “difference” by virtue of the illness and forms a support system that not only provides a safe environment for healing but also engages the collective body in the therapeutic process, removing the stigma and maintaining the strength of the core familial relationship that is supported within the broader community.
While the perception of mental illness may vary within and among socioeconomic classes it presents an ongoing challenge to individual(s) that are so classified and also to a rapidly changing society, whose responsibility it is to develop systems and polices that address the needs of those who are impacted by the nightmares that have become their lives.