.... Fighting the stigma through religious leaders. Religion and religious healing is very important in the Somali community, and when it comes to any physical or mental illness, the first approach many of them take is to seek religious healing. Since Somalis place high trust in religious leaders, partnering up with them to break the stigma can encourage people go to professionals along with utilizing the help of religious leaders. A recent article by the Star Tribune titled Somali-American imams fight stigma of mental illness discussed an effort by Fairview Health Services offering a training to imams or religious leaders on signs of mental illness and how to spot these signs and possibly make a referral to professionals. This article stated having imams as allies is key in breaking the stigma of mental illness in...
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...I am a firm believer that social stigma does exist against individuals who seek treatment for mental health concerns. This topic really hits home for two reasons. One, I have A.D.D., and two, I suffer from depression. It took me a while to say these things out loud. I cried when I was diagnosed because I did not want to rely on medication for me to function normally. I also didn't want people to look at me different. Even though I have accepted it, I still get people who think it is all in my head. They really think it is something that I can fix if I concentrate harder, or think happier thoughts. I have had a close friend tell me that depression is not even a real thing. Social stigma is out there. As stated in the artical, "No shame, no blame:...
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...The stigma surrounding mental health adversely affects people with mental illnesses and it has continuously been an issue in the United States. According to Amy Sickel, Jason Seacat, and Nina Nabors, “Nearly half of American adults are likely to experience a mental disorder during their lifetime” (202). Yet, as stated by Susan Abbey and other members of the Canadian Psychiatric Association, the stigma and discrimination based on race and gender has decreased significantly in the last century while it remains prevalent for people with mental illness (1). “Stigma marks a person as different and devalued” (Abbey et al. 2). Many studies show that increased mental health stigma contributes to decreased self-esteem and lower self-efficacy. This...
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...Erving Goffman was one of the first sociologists to write about disease stigma. Goffman thought that people were stigmatized by others on the basis of being different, and this “deviance” results in “spoiled identity.” (Bios Sociologicus:) Singling people out as different devalues their social position. This idea of stigma focused on the social/psychological processes of being stigmatized and the consequences of stigma. Using a variety of qualitative methods, Goffman developed classifications of the different elements of social interaction. (Goffman E. 1971) Goffman made contributions to the related fields of the sociology of mental illness and the sociology of stigma. Goffman defined a stigma as a ‘deeply discrediting’ attribute in the context of a set of relationships. He distinguished three types: abominations of the body, blemishes of character and tribal stigmata. (Bios Sociologicus:) Goffman knew that the handling of possibly damaging information was critical for three aspects of our identity: “the ‘personal’, the ‘social’ and the ‘ego”. (Tarwireyi F.) Our personal identity is what makes each of us unique and it consists of fingerprints of our life histories. Our identity is what others understand about us. Our ego identity refers to what we think about ourselves. In one part of Stigma Goffman suggested that we are all, to some degree, stigmatized. (Bios Sociologicus:) There is a huge amount of inequalities in health that we see within and between countries...
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...Beauty Myth, Stigma, and Deviance Carol Webb Northwood University In the year 2013 where as a society people are accepting that men marry men and women marry women, it is hard to believe that as a society we still judge a person and their professional capabilities based on their physical appearance. The reality is that this is an ongoing problem, not just in the United States, but globally. The manner in which people are treated that are defined as deviant by any person or group of people, can have an extremely negative effect on their emotional well being, and as a result on their physical health as well. This paper will address the correlation that exists between the Beauty Myth, the Stigma it creates, and how deviance plays a role in these beliefs, especially in the work place. In the book The Beauty Myth: How Images of Beauty Are Used Against Women by Naomi Wolfe, she states that the basic premise of The Beauty Myth is that as a women have gained increased social power and prominence, expected adherence to standards of physical beauty has grown stronger for women. (Naomi Wolfe, 1991). In the workforce, this expectancy that is placed on employees can range from the business owner or management if they are passed up on a job opportunity, or for promotion. A personal view that the obese person is lazy or sloppy can originate from the co-workers that gossips or say cruel things, often on a daily basis. Social stigma as defined by Wikipedia is the extreme disapproval...
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...Introduction: The first Part of this paper will review the literature to define Classification. Briefly Discuss DSM IV and ICD 10 and list the main categories of clinical disorders. The paper will discuss the main dangers of classification identified as labelling and Stigma which have lifelong implications for those diagnosed with a mental illness. The main advantages of classification such as most appropriate treatment and community education Definition of the Classification system used to Diagnosis Mental illness. As Social workers it important to try and grasp the concepts of how classification of mental illness is arrived at and to have a basic knowledge of the types of mental disorders people can be classified as having so we can understand the basis of a diagnosis. According Mendelson (2001) “Classification refers to ordering of objects into groups on the basis of their relationship. The result is a classificatory system. Nomenclature related to agreed names that have been assigned to disease or syndromes. Taxonomy covers principles and methods underlying the practice of classification. Finally, nosology denotes the conceptual system that supports the strategy of classifying.” ( Mendelson 2001 p. 63) Golightley (2004) text states that classification is an important step towards the diagnosis of a mental disorder. Mental disorder is broken down into various classifications that represent groups or syndromes of symptoms. Thus if a series of symptoms fits into...
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...William Ashton, Ph.D. York College, CUNY A student began a short literature review on the stigma of the mentally ill and perceptions of dangerousness. Working through PsychArticles she found three likely articles. When she read each, she wrote a paragraph description of each: Alexander, L.A., & Link, B.G. (2003). The impact of contact on stigmatizing attitudes towards people with mental illness. Journal of Mental Health, 12, 271-289. Alexander and Link (2003) examined the stigma of mental illness, perceptions of dangerousness and social distance in a telephone survey. They found that, as a participant’s own life contact with mentally ill individuals increased, participants were both less likely to perceive a target mentally ill individual in a vignette as physically dangerous and less likely to desire social distance from the target. This relationship remained after controlling for demographic and confound variables, such as gender, ethnicity, education, income and political conservatism. They also found that any type of contact – with a friend, a spouse, a family member, a work contact, or a contact in a public place – with mentally ill individuals reduced perceptions of dangerousness of the target in the vignette. Corrigan, P. W., Rowan, D., Green, A., Lundin, R., River, P., Uphoff-Wasowski, K., White, K., & Kubiak, M.A. (2002). Challenging two mental illness stigmas: Personality responsibility and dangerousness. Schizophrenia Bulletin, 28, 293-309. Corrigan...
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...Journal Article Critique Paper BSHS 435 January 15 2016 Literature Review In this article critique paper as a team we are researching what the effects are that a behavioral specialist has on the behavioral control for the mentally disabled. While not all clients have improvement, with evaluation in methodology in mental illness, the causes of the positive or negative program outcomes become the primary focus of study. Behavioral specialist teach their clients the skills that they need to improve on their personal social skills. Unlike other research methodologies, evaluation research is usually initiated by someone's need for a decision to be made about policy, program management, or strategic planning. It is important to understand the effects that a behavioral specialist has on the mentally disabled. With evaluation in methodology in mental illness, the causes of the positive or negative program outcomes become the primary focus of study. Using program goals and actual individual and group performance measures in meeting these objectives, evaluation researchers attempt to locate factors related to the actual program outcomes. Traditionally, an evaluator will work directly with program leadership, staff, and consumers to determine the most salient factors that define program performance concerning the goals of a program. In ideal evaluation study situations, mental health service program staff, directors, funding sources, and all other groups that have a stake...
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...patients. The challenges of leprosy and the stigma following the diseases had been universal. The extent and size of the stigma varies from country to country depending on the level of the spread of the diseases. Leprosy has long been stigmatized because of visible deformities...
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...Medicalization of Marijuana The Stigma of a Miracle Drug March 25, 2014 Synopsis The following media review is based on a two part documentary which focuses on the healing qualities of medical marijuana in the treatment of Dravet’s syndrome along with a number of other illnesses. I researched the benefits of medical marijuana, specifically the medicalization of the plant and its derivatives. This includes the extraction and ingestion of cannabis oil in its pure form for the treatment of Dravet’s syndrome, a form of chronic epilepsy often found in children. This paper focuses on the history of the use of cannabis for its healing properties and provides a brief overview of the documentary which is the basis of the paper, detailing the importance of the medicalization of the cannabis plant for use in treating a number of ailments, including but not limited to the treatment of Dravet’s Syndrome and Autism in children. It was not until I watched the documentary which was recently aired on CNN entitled “Weed, Cannabis Madness” and its sequel “Weed 2” that I became interested in the healing qualities that this plant possesses and more specifically, its ability to treat children who are suffering from a condition called Dravet’s Syndrome. Dravet’s Syndrome is a form of chronic epilepsy which causes children to seize violently for upwards of 50 seizures per day. There is no cure for this disease, and for many children the drugs prescribed by their physicians such as...
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...Group Comparison Paper Troy R. Witt The world is often a beautiful place. There are triumphant tales of kindred spirits helping those in need, of people coming together despite their differences, and of those once lost being found. However, there is another side of life that combats these positive stories with that of prejudice, stereotypes, discrimination, stigmas, and hate towards those who stand out or have unique attributes. Especially when compared to our culture of power that is often white, healthy, and traditional. The following will define, describe the treatment of, and perceive the lives of two of these stigmatized groups, those with obesity and those who are LGBT, to further detail the similarities and differences of their daily struggles. One clear, thematic, distinction is the blatant external identification of obese individuals against the hidden sexual stigma of those who are LGBT. Group Definition Weight stigma is a social stigma in which those who are overweight or obese are targets of prejudicial attitudes and discriminatory behaviors. This stigma is present across many dimensions in our society and can be seen in interpersonal, institutional, organizational, and cultural discrimination. Alarmingly, research has discerned the weight stigma has become more prevalent in our society, as weight based discrimination has increased 66% from the 1990’s into the 2000’s (Andreyeva, T., Puhl, R. M., & Brownell, K. D., 2008). Despite this group actually being a majority...
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...World Health Organization described stigma as one of “the world’s remaining greatest obstacles to the treatment of mental illness” (Chronister, Chou, & Liao, 2013, p.2). Mental illness is defined as a serious mental, behavioral or emotional disorder that disables one’s ability to fully engage in life activities (Chronister, Chou, & Liao, 2013). In general, mental illness can range from sitting alone in a room for a while to eating less and to having severe depression/anxiety, suicidal thoughts, or schizophrenia (Kaplan, Aneshensel, Bierman, & Phelan, 2013). From a sociological standpoint, the study of mental illness deals with examining how societal notions frame the thoughts, feelings, and actions...
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...all around the world. Only up until very recently has the idea of homosexuality become a bit more accepted and deemed “normal” than from the past. Despite this, homosexuals still suffer immensely in many aspects such as stress and discrimination. One of the most prevalent things homosexuals suffer from is mental health issues. Findings from a study that was conducted in Norway, gave evidence that homosexuals suffer from more mental health problems such as substance use disorders, mood disorders, and suicide than heterosexuals (Cochran, 2001). Why are mental health issues so prevalent amongst the homosexual community? What is the reason homosexuals suffer from psychological issues? In my paper, I will discuss how homosexuals suffer and are at a high risk for psychological issues due to the stigma, animosity, and discrimination that is rampant in their stressful social environment. The mental health of homosexual individuals has been a cause of debate for many years. In 1960 to 1970, homosexuality was named as a psychological disorder by the DSM, or the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder (DSM; American Psychiatric Association, 1973). It was eventually removed, but it blemished the discussion of mental health and homosexuality which would have a deep mark on society. At this point in time, many people already viewed homosexuality as something objectionable, but its temporary label as a disorder created an even bolder view of repulse and abomination. The debate that...
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...Scholarly paper on HIV in women Student name: Institution: Introduction Relevant nursing issue Some of the questions that arise from women living with HIV are barrier to social services. It affects the livelihood of women; thus, they are unable to acquire some essential services. Another issue is that they have mental health problem; thus, they are placed at a higher risk for HIV infection. They also face stigmatization that is rooted in discrimination (Peninnah, 2013). Other issues that arise are limitation to children health care, misinformation regarding treatment options, lack of access to transportation, substance abuse in regard to treatment, and unstable housing. There are attempts that have been put to measure and understand one’s health status. The rules also incorporate the physical wellbeing, psychological status, and cognitive functioning (Deanna, 2013). The tests are referred to as Health-related quality of life (HRQoL). It is a way of knowing how individuals feel about their health. It is done from an interactive and interpretive point of view. It enables an empathetic understanding of daily life experience is different life settings. HRQoL also enhances the identification of the different race, gender, class and social positioning. It also considers social cultural and political forces. It has been knotted that, PLHIV...
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