Reducing the Stigma of Mental Illness.

In a recent national survey, Pescosolido, Monahan, Link, Stueve, and Kikuzawa (1999) found that while Americans' current knowledge of mental illness is greater than in 1950, Americans continue to fear people with mental illness. Each year, an estimated 50 million Americans will experience a mental disorder while only one fourth of them will seek mental health services (Center for Mental Health Services, [CMHS] 2000). This figure represents about one-third more Americans than those diagnosed with cardiovascular disease. Why do Americans refuse to seek help for mental illness? We contend that this disparity results from the stigma attached to mental illness. Counselors must educate the general public about the misconceptions of mental illness and advocate for parity in mental health insurance coverage. WHAT IS STIGMA? The word stigma originated in ancient Greece and is derived from a word meaning to mark someone. The American Heritage College Dictionary (Berube et al., 1993) defines stigma as a mark of disgrace or reproach. Stigma is not simply the use of negative labels or wrong words; it is disrespectful to the individual who has mental illness. It further discourages the individual from seeking the help needed for fear of discrimination (CMHS, 2000). Furthermore, stigma encourages fear, mistrust, and violence against people with mental illness. Clifford Beers described this stigma in his 1908 book, A Mind that Found Itself (1966). This book, written 93 years ago, gives a chilling account of Beers' experiences in a mental hospital at the turn of the century. Today, stigma still exists because of negative portrayal in the media, specifically, in newspapers and entertainment. Newspapers emphasize the mental illness background of perpetrators of violent crimes (National Mental Health Association, [NMHA] 2000). The entertainment industry portrays people with mental illness with negative terms (NMHA, 2000). Additionally, research on television viewing by Granello and Pauley (2000) "suggests that television portrays inaccurate and unfavorable images of mental illness" (p. 171). For example, this past television season, the popular series, ER aired six episodes that starred Sally Field as Abby's mother. Field's character was described as Abby's "bipolar mother," (Episode Guide, 2001). The publicity write-ups describing these episodes included adjectives such as: mentally unbalanced, mentally disturbed, unstable, unpredictable, disconnected, suicidal, and a broken woman. These derogatory terms fuel stigma and negative attitude towards persons with mental illness. Although monumental achievements have been made in medicine, science, and technology during the past 93 years, unfortunately, the same success has not been realized with stigma and mental illness. CURRENT ANTI-STIGMA CAMPAIGNS Surgeon General Satcher has set a national standard by calling attention to the problem of stigma and mental health with Mental Health: A Report of the Surgeon General (Satcher, 1999). The Surgeon General acknowledged the huge problem of stigma and stated that it must end. He indicated that research and avenues to communicate that research to the public are critical ways to combat stigma. His recommendations also included evaluating current anti-stigma campaigns for their effectiveness. Most recently, Surgeon General Satcher outlined the following specific suggestions to overcome stigma and discrimination in mental health (Simmons, 2001): * Increase public awareness of effective treatments * Tailor treatments to age, gender, race and culture * Facilitate entry into treatment * Reduce the financial barriers to treatment (p. 19). Many statewide anti-stigma campaigns have been launched to counter the negative effects of stigma. For example, South Carolina's Department of Mental Health [SCDMH] launched their Anti-Stigma Campaign in May 2000 to raise awareness and reduce fear associated with mental illness (SCDMH, 2000). …