Social context affects mental health stigma

Stigma, social context, and mental health: lesbian and gay couples across the transition to adoptive parenthood.

This is the first study to examine change in depression and anxiety across the first year of adoptive parenthood in same-sex couples (90 couples: 52 lesbian, 38 gay male). Given that sexual minorities uniquely contend with sexual orientation-related stigma, this study examined how both internalized and enacted forms of stigma affect the mental health of lesbians and gay men during the transitio...

Mental Health Stigma ∗

Comparing self-reports to administrative data records on diagnosis and prescription drug use, we find that survey respondents under-report mental health conditions 36% of the time when asked about diagnosis and about 20% of the time when asked about prescription drug use. Survey respondents are significantly less likely to under-report other conditions such as diabetes or hypertension. This beh...

Challenging mental health-related stigma through social contact.

Stigma is one of the greatest challenges facing people with mental illness today. In addition to the distress and feelings of rejection it causes, stigma can lead to housing and employment discrimination and can cause people to avoid seeking help for their illness due to shame and fear. Social contact—direct, personal contact between members of the general public and members of a stigmatized gr...

Mental Health and Mental Disorder in Social Context

Stigma in mental health care.

Received November 28, 2007; accepted December 12, 2007. Drs. Tsao, Tummala, and Roberts are affiliated with the Departments of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee, Wis. Address correspondence to Carol I. Ping Tsao, M.D., Psychiatry and Behavioral Health, Medical College of Wisconsin, 5000 W. National Ave, Milwaukee, WI 53295; [email protected] (e-mail)....