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Degree

Master of Arts, Miami University, School Psychology, 2012.

Abstract

Researchers and theorists disagree on the definition of mental illness stigma, its cause, and what problems result from it. Unsurprisingly, they also disagree on how to interpret the results of social and political programs enacted to reduce stigma: some associate labeling with stigma and seek to prevent it, while others associate deviant behavior with stigma, and labeling with treatment and social reintegration. For this paper, I surveyed and interviewed college students to study the association of social stigma with labels and behaviors associated with mental illness. Participants indicated in interviews that they were unlikely to engage in relationships with people identified mentally ill, in contrast to their reports of high social comfort via survey. I discuss the limits of this study and the implications of its results for research definitions of mental illness stigma.

Subject Headings

Clinical Psychology; Psychology

Keywords

stigma; schizophrenia; mental illness

Committee / Advisors

Larry Leitner, PhD (Advisor)
Vaishali Raval, PhD (Committee Member)
Virginia Wickline, PhD (Committee Member)

Pages

102p.

Document number: miami1357259915
Permalink: http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=miami1357259915

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