A Modified Labeling Theory Approach To Mental Disorders: An Empirical Assessment
Abstract
Proposes a modified labeling perspective that claims that even if labeling does not directly produce mental disorder, it can lead to negative outcomes. The authors' approach asserts that socialization leads individuals to develop a set of beliefs about how most people treat mental patients. When individuals enter treatment, these beliefs take on new meaning. The more patients believe that they will be devalued and discriminated against, the more they feel threatened by interacting with others. Such strategies can lead to negative consequences for social support networks, jobs, and self-esteem. The authors test this modified labeling perspective using samples of psychiatric patients (n = 164) and 429 untreated community residents (aged 19–59 yrs), and find that both believed that most people will reject mental patients. Additionally, patients endorsed strategies of secrecy, withdrawal, and education to cope with the threat they perceive. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)...