Skip to main content

How to Talk Constructively About Mental Illness [PSMag.com]

 

Seung-Hui Cho, Adam Lanza, James Holmes, Elliot Rodger: In the wake of mass shootings, we often blame mental illness rather than lax gun control for making those tragedies possible. A Washington Post survey of 1,001 Americans found that 63 percent cited problems in identifying and treating people with mental-health issues as the primary cause of mass shootings in this country, while just 23 percent cited gun control laws.

Years of research shows that the purported link between mental illness and violence is minuscule at most, yet public figures continue to say things like, "Guns don't kill peopleβ€” the mentally ill do," erroneously equating medical conditions with murderous tendencies. This perception helps fuel stigmatization of mental illness. Unfairly profiled patients may be discriminated against when seeking employment or housing, and some report that their satisfaction with life as a whole is blighted by society's fear of their condition.



[For more of this story, written by Rachel Nuwer, go to http://www.psmag.com/health-an...about-mental-illness]

Add Comment

Comments (0)

Post
Copyright Β© 2023, PACEsConnection. All rights reserved.
×
×
×
×
Link copied to your clipboard.
×