5.01 History of Psychological Disorders

In two paragraphs, answer the following reflection questions thoroughly: How does culture affect the identification and treatment of psychological disorders? Be sure to define culture and provide an example in your response. Explain one strategy to reduce the stigma associated with seeking treatment for a psychological disorder.

Culture greatly affects an individual's perception of a mental illness, as it does with some physical illnesses. Culture itself is defined as a shared set of beliefs, often by people of the same geographical community. In eastern societies, anxiety is considered a consequence of spiritual failure. Religion dominates these cultures and is one of the main focuses of the entire society. A person with depression or anxiety, therefore, feels much more pressure against seeking help for their mental disease. Here, treatment might involve seeking help from a powerful religious leader (much like the President or the Pope, to western societies). This is much more daunting than simply visiting a doctor and may affect the the marriage and employment potential of other relatives. In America, getting treatment for a mental illness is a matter of health, whereas in the eastern society, treatment is a matter of culture and livelihood. It is of utmost importance that the negative stigma of mental illness is eradicated from the world so that those with mental diseases can freely seek treatment for their best health.

Proper education is perhaps the best way to aid in reducing such a powerful social stigma as that attached to mental illnesses. The more people better understand the science of mental diseases, the more they are likely to accept them as a matter of health requiring treatment just like any physical disorder. Various research supports the idea that successful treatment can be used to justify the need for treatment; the more people know about a mental illness and the ways to combat it, the more people will support treatments for such mental illnesses. Negative media bias against mental diseases will likely phase out over time as well. The more society accepts mental illnesses, the less the media will be pressured to put these diseases into a negative light. Simply changing the name of treatment can help buffer the process from existing stigmas. Mental "asylums" are often referred to in novels and movies as a place for those with mental problems and violent dispositions. However, asylums are simply mental hospitals. Although these hospitals were notorious for mistreatment in the past, those (especially in Western culture) have advanced to be helpful environments for people seeking treatment for mental disorders. Using the term "mental hospital" and it's evolving positive connotation in hand with education will successfully reduce, even remove, the stigmas associated with mental illness.