Mental illness is probably the most misunderstood and abused of conditions. At one time it was something that no one would dare talk about. The stigma was so strong it was looked upon as a crime. Patients would be “put away” not necessarily to be treated, but to shield them from the public. It was an illness to be ashamed of, cursed with, and brought upon by the patients themselves. It was looked upon as a damning and socially isolating disease. And the sad part is, is that it hasn’t changed much. In the Disney movie Frozen, Elsa’s parents hide her powers from the world, telling her to “Don’t let them in, don’t let them see Be the good girl you always have to be…show more content… And in her article titled "The Riskiness of Disclosing Stigmatizing Conditions" Stephanie Medley-Rath presents her findings on this issue of stigmatizing mental illness and explores the real-world risk involved with disclosing stigmatizing conditions. Relating it to the movie Frozen, she asserts that “Disclosing any disorder, disease, or disability is risky, as it is found that stigmatization is greater towards the individuals" (Rath, 2016). She refers to several studies one of which done called " The construction of fear: Americans' preferences for social distance from children and adolescents with mental health problems,” which provides some statistics that seem to generally support her assertion, as it revolves around the fact that in their study, a majority of people would rather not live around an associated with those with depression or ADHD. However, these types’ pf undesirable outlooks around mental health come from many areas in social groups, such as, peers, doctors, and even family members. People are afraid of both the reactions caused by stigma and the resulting discrimination that can occur, including loss of employment, housing, friends and respect. In this report, we will discuss why disclosing a mental illness involves risk, supporting and/or opposing statistics on how this could prove to be detrimental to individuals inferred from the data provided, and various interpretations of the data provided…show more content… It would see that based upon out book that functionalists would believe that by recognizing mental illness, society upholds values about conforming behavior. Symbolic interactionists see mentally ill persons not as "sick," but as victims of societal reactions to their behavior. This is seen more in this article as more of a cause and effect of the stigmas effects on the individuals, therefore their societal reactions for their behavior. Finally, conflict theorists, believe that the people in a society with the fewest resources are the most likely to be labeled mentally ill. For instance, women, racial minorities, and the poor all suffer higher rates of mental illness than groups of higher social and economic status. Considering all three perspectives helps to give a broader understanding of the issue from all the angles so that one has a fuller comprehension of how each one interprets the data
