Some religious groups hold the view that the illness is one of God's punishments. The families consulted believe that it is important to understand how the stigma surrounding schizophrenia developed. Bleuler wanted to convey the split between what is perceived, what is believed, and what is objectively real. He did not mean that the person with schizophrenia is split into two personalities, but that there is a splitting away of the personality from reality. Added to this basic confusion is a history of blame.
Families agree that blame is a major stumbling block to seeking and receiving support.
In the late 1800s and the early part of this century, three competing views about the nature of mental illness gained acceptance in the psychiatric profession. In the 1950s, many North American psychiatrists began to believe that schizophrenia resulted from a form of psychic trauma inflicted on the individual early in life, typically by parents. Mothers of those with schizophrenia were believed to be over-anxious, obsessive, and domineering. One mother said she almost understood this. When you are pushing to get help for your child, it is easy for some to 'put the cart before the horse' and point to this pushiness and tension as the cause of your child's problem, rather than the result of it.