Mental Illness And Its Effects On The Media Essay

Introduction Mental illness is often wrongly portrayed in the United States’ media creating stigmatization and misrepresentation. Mental illness â€Å"refers to a wide range of mental disorders that affect your mood, thinking and behavior† (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2015). Examples of disorders include anxiety, depression, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Any â€Å"negative attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors are called stigma† (Wilson et al., 2016, p. 2) and stigma can contribute to progression of mental illness because of its harmful effects due to misrepresentation in the media. In the recent years, the United States media has began to address the reprehension around the topic of mental illness, as it has began to develop into a rising problem in citizens across the nation. In the past, any portrayal of a figure or character with a mental disorder would be wrongly depicted, therefore, creating a distorted perception for the viewers (Stout et al., 2004, p. 1). Television shows have started to establish characters with mental illness in hopes to lessen the stigma behind ill characters due to the wrongful associations viewers may make. The way media viewers’ stereotype the mentally ill into categories can be harmful to the well being of those with disorders. Stereotypes can be so harmful that even medical professionals â€Å"contend that stigma is a major reason why one-fourth of the estimated 50 million Americans experiencing mental illness yearly will not seekShow MoreRelatedThe Portrayal Of Mental Illness962 Words   |  4 PagesPortrayal of mental illness in media, films and television programmes is extensive and predominantly preserves myths and stereotypes about mental illness. People with mental illness are most commonly shown as being violent and aggressive, but they are also frequently depicted as tragic, tortured, genius, dangerous, eccentric, flamboyant, hysterical, sexual, jokers and rebels. Mental health professionals are variously portrayed as incompetent, sinister, unrealistically seductive or rationalist foilsRead MoreThe Representation Of Mental Illness1426 Words   |  6 PagesWhen thinking of mental illness, what image pops into your head? An unstable old lady in restraints talking to herself? A pre-teen harming themselves in a bathroom stall? Norman Bates? The Joker? All these inaccurate examples stem from the medias representation of mental illness. This is an important issue to address as, society has been fed these wrongful depictions for decades and it can be challenging to overcome and shift these presentations (Uwujaren). The representation of mental ill health inRead MoreThe Effects Of Stigma Surrounding Mental Illness1658 Words   |  7 PagesMental illness is a controversial topic in recent news. From Sandy Hook to the Aurora movie theatre shooting, the effects of mental illness have sparked fierce debate and negative stigma surrounding the issue. Mental illnesses, â€Å"patterns of thoughts, feelings, or behaviors that are deviant, distressful, and dysfunctional† (Myers 562), affect 1 in 4 people at some point in their lives (Stigma and Discrimination). However, only 59.6% of people with mental illness report receiving treatment, as theyRead MoreEssay Media Madness1389 Words   |  6 PagesIntroduction With the ongoing advance in technology today, it is no surprise that the media is becoming an even greater source in acquiring and sharing information. But exactly how accurate are these reported information? As mentioned in Otto Wahl’s, Media Madness: Public Images of Mental Illness, Americans tend to retrieve most their knowledge about mental illness through the mass media (Wahl 3). When it comes to mental illness, it is safe to say that much of society views the mentally ill as deviants whoRead MoreThe Stigma of Mental Illness1656 Words   |  7 Pagesdiagnosis might exacerbate the stigma of mental illness. In Corrigan’s study clinical diagnosis adds groupness for the collection of people with mental illness which worsens the level of prejudice (Corrigan 34). Corrigan states that this ultimately leads to overgeneralization, as there is an assumption that all individuals diagnosed with the same mental disorders behave the same way (Corrigan 34). According to Corriga n the stereotypic description of mental illness perceives to the public that, peopleRead MoreEssay about The Portrayal of Schizophrenia in Me, Myself, and Irene1178 Words   |  5 Pages Most people gather what they know about mental illnesses from television and film. Unfortunately these media portrayals are inaccurate and create stigma. They depict people suffering from mental illnesses as different, dangerous and laughable. Characters are often addicted to drugs or alcohol, are violent, dangerous, or out of control. Horror film characters like Norman Bates in Psycho, Jack Torrance in the Shining, or Hannibal Lecter in Silence of the Lambs associate the typical psycho- killerRead MoreThe Stigma Of Mental Illness1212 Words   |  5 Pagesexperiencing symptoms of mental illness. Patients suffering a physiological illness rarely hear these words, but they have begun to sound like a broken record to the mentally ill. Everyone sympathizes with the stomach, the liver, the eye, and many other organs in the body when they begin to malfunction, but no one sympathizes with the brain. It is unimaginable and almost abominable for the brain to get sick. Mental illness is prob ably the most misconstrued and trivialized illness, and this misconceptionRead MoreThe Effects Of Social Media On Young People1304 Words   |  6 PagesIs Social media responsible for the increase in Mental Health issues in young people? The rates of mental health issues in teenagers and young people is increasing, with 20% of the young people in the United States suffering from a mental disorder in their lifetime (Traci Pederson, 2010, Psych Central). This increase must have stemmed from something recent and modern, which many psychologists believe may be the large increase in use of social media, for example Facebook, which has around 1.2 billionRead MoreIntroduction.... â€Å"If Mental Illness Could Be Seen On A1255 Words   |  6 PagesIntroduction... â€Å"If mental illness could be seen on a sufferer maybe society wouldn’t say ‘just get over it’ .† Mental illness unlike other diseases or disorders are, for the most part invisible. They are not easily recognised. These instances of being told to â€Å"just get over it† or â€Å"just calm down† or â€Å"It’s all in your head† are direct evidence of the stigma of having mental illness present in some cultures. A mental illness is in fact in your head, but your head is connected to body, they areRead MoreMental Health Is The Largest Cause Of Disability1284 Words   |  6 PagesPoor mental health is the largest cause of disability and is connected with poor physical health, poor relationships, poor education and work prospects (Gov, 2014). Deinstitutionalisation in the 1950s led to community-based mental health and in turn brought a real but hidden issue of mental health into the visibility of the larger public sphere. Mental illness was a topic that was mostly treated only by individuals’ families and kept as a private matter and was off limits to outsiders apart from