The Stigma Of Mental Disorders

Public Stigma model are described in the categories of different points such as stereotypes, prejudice, and discrimination. Stereotypes are mentioned in a way through mutual agreement with beliefs particularly in groups of people or a behavior as a whole. Most cases with stereotypes occur when an individual doesn’t have any experience with or the awareness towards PWD’s are exposed to the detrimental stereotypes along with the misguided views of disability. Prejudice can be described as unforgivable damaging attitude toward an outer group or also towards the members of that outer group. Discrimination is described as unfair and negative behaviors toward members of the outer groups due to the foundation of their association.

This model might influence why people without disabilities may choose to deny or minimize the possibility of acquiring a disability is mainly to avoid the influential effect on the public opinion of disability and the public’s response to people with disabilities. Also, whatever is considered normal won’t be normal tomorrow since the environment or culture are shifting and evolving their diagnostic criteria and methods.

People with psychiatric disabilities might not choose to seek for help and treatment because this may show discrimination and can be taken upon to themselves which will lead to creating self-stigma. Individuals that have mental illness recognize and believe the negative judgments are expressed and in effect will consider themselves as helpless unworthy of care, dangerous, and even take self-consideration that they are liable for their afflictions. In result will promote themselves to feel humiliated, low self-esteem, not being able to finish their goals.

The in-group /out-group model related to stigma and the way it is categorizing disabilities that it is necessary by displaying the out-group people to be with any kind of disabilities such as support cane for the blind, wheelchair for the crippled or having paralysis and for the in-group would be the "social norms" people in the society. The stigma model relates who to show prejudice and discrimination too.

Categorization such as labels and diagnoses depersonalize individuals with disabilities simply because individuals with disabilities are life lined with the services in order to survive and without it, diagnosis third-party payers will not compensate and also the government agencies won’t provide services and benefits making things very difficult for them. Increasing prejudice and discrimination are effected by self-image towards the disabled for an example with individual and another experience the same type and difficulty of disability and with the outcome with different circumstances, resources, values, interests and abilities. Categorization tends to lead to false stereotypes, such as the stereotype that all or most people with the same disability share important characteristics, understandings, or opinion.

On page 20, Robinson compared the American Psychological Association (APA) as “corrupt referees”. The point Robinson is attempting to make when he stated that “Just like that, Asperger’s was gone”…“ You can do things like that when you publish the rules.” Robinson is trying to raise the context by saying the rule makers or the referees are shady and by creating the game and making the game rigged for the out-group which are the individuals who are disabled and compared to group unwinnable.

The concept of normalcy relate to psychiatric diagnoses created or modified by the APA through providing the best services for those with disabilities, however seldomly considering the accessibility, cost and the comfort to those who are without disabilities receive first priority. Additionally, the APA came around 42 year to understand that biological and physical factors add to the causality of mental illness and other psychiatric disabilities.

Abnormalcy most likely always implies deficit or inferior. According to the example of Martha’s Vineyard, D/deafness was a common disability. Since the majority of the community work expose to deafness was not considered pathological. However, other kinds of disabilities such as blindness or orthopedic impairments were considered abnormal in the community. The definition of normalcy is determined mostly at the lack of illness or disability. In another words if the individual is without illness or is not disabled that person is viewed and judged to be normal. It’s common to hear that normal means perfect but simply means typical, routine, common place, in the middle, and to be expected. There are five factors that explains the definition of normalcy: value judgement that may mistakenly interfere, the environment in which the person functions, the party that makes the determination and their motives, the purpose of assessment, and the diagnostic tools, instruments and classification system.

The definition of normalcy is closely related in creating a public stigma towards the abnormalcy. Since the term abnormalcy usually refers to minority and inferiority, there is a strong tendency of discrimination, prejudice, and stereotypes towards the minority disabled group.

The five models of disabilities: the biomedical model of disability, the environment model of disability, function model of disability and the sociopolitical model of disability. Each of the models signifies and provides to the understanding of the disability experience.

The Biomedical Model basically focuses in the method of ones change while the Functional Model is focused on intervention methods and designed to adjusting the roles of ones- self. The Environmental Model focuses on the surroundings of both the physical and social environment for the individual, Sociopolitical Model focuses on the civil rights and equal social status. The two out of the five models, the Religious-moral model and the Biomedical Model are viewed the “problem” as seen solely within the individual because Religious- moral viewed disability to be evil, wrongdoing and sin or punishment from God and Biomedical Model get their information based upon their education and training, meeting boards and licensing principles trusting critically through analytic methods.

The most well defined example to use to diverge the models of disability is through deafness. Deafness is considered from the Biomedical Model as natural loss of dysfunction that involves with treatment to the individual. In contrast, the Deaf Community views deafness form the Environmental Model and regards individual who are deaf as members of a diverse culture that practices different methods to communicate.

The American with Disabilities

Act is an organization that focuses on specific individuals with disabilities to whom have a physical or mental deficiency that considerably limits their life activity. This includes to those who disability that are visible and invisible, and also fall under the categories for the individual who do not have a disability but are held as having a disability. ADA help increase the employment rate with people with disabilities and through the five titles of ADA are providing accessibility to the people with disabilities.

From the five models of disability that have been mentioned, three of the models and the functions of models of disability influence the relationship between the models of disability and legislation that is passed. The three models are Biomedical Model, Functional Model, and Sociopolitical Model. Biomedical model pin-point the position of the problem through standardized test and studies determining causal attribution, Functional Model ideas parallel to the biomedical model and speculates disability as an deficiency or deficit. Disability are caused by physical, medical or cognitive deficits and restraints individual performances and or the aptitude to perform an effective tasks.

Lastly, sociopolitical model turns its attention towards the obstacles that people face with disabilities, focused on impairments and deficits as casual factors in disability. In this model a person’s actions are limited not by the impairment or condition but by environment and barriers are consequences of a lack of social organization.

I believe the world isn’t designed for people without disabilities but society would consider it by viewing them to be unimportant or invisible. One of the reason why PWD has to play the part of accommodating is mainly from the Biomedical Model, due to their indifference. Although, the Deaf Culture would say otherwise and express that this is their world as well as we saw on Martha’s Vineyard. Many hearing residents coped and learned signed language. This demonstrates the need for PWOD to make accommodations instead of expecting PWD to adapt to an indifferent society. Mainly due to the lack of accommodations and creating unreachable setting unfairly pressures the choices and availability towards PWD making the world designed for PWD.

Mental health facilities through rehabilitations are designed to aid disabled individuals in-order for them to work in the community and improve growth in emotional, social and intellectual skills to stand having the least dependent on the professional support.

The best methods to facilitate recovery from psychiatric symptoms is have people with psychiatric disabilities participate in a range of life activities and experiences in their community. Developing the specific skills the individual needs to function effectively and also developing the funds needed to support or strengthen the client’s present levels of functioning. The primary focus is to advance the capabilities of the person with psychiatric disabilities. Other approaches to facilitate recovery from psychiatric symptoms is providing hope and deliberate increase in client dependence so that in result can lead to an eventual increase in the client’s independent functioning.

Each level of psychiatric rehabilitations is through developing the specific skills the client needs to function effectively, developing the resources needed to support or strengthen the client’s present levels of functioning. Hope is an essential ingredient of the rehabilitation process. A deliberate increase in client dependence can lead to an eventual increase in the client’s independent functioning. Active involvement of clients in their rehabilitation process is desirable. Two fundamental interventions are the development of client skills and the development of environmental supports. Long-term drug treatment is an often necessary but rarely sufficient component of rehabilitation and through social support, instrumental support, family education and support, skill training, transfer training, behavior incentives and cognitive rehabilitations.