The Cultural Construction of Mental Illness

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The last several decades could be characterized by the dramatic changes in the structure of society and values appreciated by its members. Additionally, the blistering development of technologies introduced the new environment characterized by a number of innovative approaches, social and cultural constructs, and attitudes. At the moment, the majority of traditional spheres and concepts are reconsidered to introduce the new methods and conceptions that result from the appearance of new stressors.

Additionally, cultural constructions are also impacted by the significant shift of priorities conditioned by the alteration of values and approaches. In these regards, the understanding of the major concerns of this process is crucial for the further evolution of a number of spheres, social institutions, and cultural constructs. Besides, a persons socialization and health have always been the most important aspects of the functioning of any society.

Furthermore, a number of diseases serve as the reason for the exclusion of an individual and his/her institutionalization. The attitude towards mental illnesses has also always been an ambiguous issue which conditioned the image of a person, promoting his/her institutionalization. For this reason, it is vital to determine the most important concerns related to the cultural construction of mental illnesses.

First, the attitude towards the given problem has obviously been changing in the course of time. That is why we tend to analyze the relevant literature to outline the most important factors that impact the formation of the construct. Yet, the majority of the sources chosen for the investigation describe the situation related to the issue and peculiar to the end of past century. The review of the given sources contributes to the acquisition of knowledge needed to trace the evolution of the cultural construction of mental illnesses and determine the most significant changes.

Nevertheless, Kay Redfield Jamison in her 1995 memoir An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness provides readers with the description of the life of a person suffering from the manic-depressive disorder and the challenges she has to face (Jamison 6). The author delves into the peculiarities of illness and the change of the peoples attitude to a person suffering from this disease. The main idea of the given work is the unfeasibility of the existing approach to people suffering from mental illnesses.

The author tends to prove that despite the fact that individuals affected by this disorder might act in a strange way, it is mistaken to exclude them from society and label as dangerous. Jamison emphasizes the importance of social prominence and tries to refute the idea that people of this sort are not able to remain the active members of society and perform some complicated activities. Using her own experience as the background for cogitations, the author investigates the factors that impact the formation of the cultural construction and deteriorate the image of people with mental disorders.

Besides, she is sure that the isolation and other environmental factors might have the great negative effect on the personality of a person and condition the deterioration of his state. In these regards, it is crucial to provide the positive atmosphere and get rid of numerous prejudices. At the same time, Jamison acknowledges the fact that mental conditions of a person suffering from disorders could be unclear, and it is rather difficult to engage him/her into a certain social activity. Still, she is sure that it is also necessary to investigate some other aspects of relations between this sort of people and society.

Another important source that demonstrates the way in which the US system of psychiatric care operated in last century is Daphne Shcolinskis novel The Last Time I Wore a Dress. The story perfectly demonstrates the inefficiency of the existed system and the pernicious impact the cultural construction of the time had on a person suffering from various mental disorders. Being diagnosed with gender identity disorder, the author of the work provides her own feelings related to the recognition of social disapproval and her otherness. Scholinski states that the treatment she received did not have any positive impact on her state (24).

Moreover, it destroyed her self-worth and self-image. Psychiatrists considered her to be weird just because she did not meet the social requirements and expectations. The recognition of this oddity was painful and had the negative impact on the further evolution. The given book also evidences the mistaken approach used by scientists and psychiatrists in the last century. Scholinski states that a number of patients had to experience electroshock therapies because of various graphic accounts and their inability to act in the socially appreciated manner. Furthermore, the story also demonstrates the cultural construction of this sort of mental illness that impacted people and determined the attitude to them.

Marya Hornbacher introduces another concern related to the sphere of mental health and its acceptance by society. She delves into the incapacitating effects of eating disorders on the ability of a person to perform various activities and lead an active life (Hornbache 34). The author shares her memories related to the attempts to provide her with treatment and lessen the negative impacts of this disorder.

However, Hornbacher is focused on the description of the inability of the US healthcare sector to recognize the needs of people suffering from eating disorders and act in accordance with this new data. The ignorance of the system of psychiatric care and the usage of universal practices instead of the individual approach resulted in the authors becoming a socially alienated individual who was not able to interact with the other members of society.

Additionally, the author touches upon another important issue related to the image of a patient and his/her further evolution. Hornbacher states that all practices used to mitigate the negative impacts of eating disorders just contributed to the development o fear and isolation. The negative attitude towards people with anorexia or bulimia results from the mental character of the disease. For this reason, it is crucial to reconsider the approaches towards treatment and communication with people suffering from it.

Finally, Darby Penney and Peter Stastny provide a number of patients cases that evidence the great topicality of the nagging problem and the pernicious impact institutionalization and isolation might have on the identity, health, and life. The Lives They Left Behind touches upon the experiences of thousands of people spending their lives inside the hospital just because they needed assistance in overcoming severe personal tragedies or adjusting to cultural conditions of society (Penney and Stastny 23).

However, the peculiarities of cultural construction and functioning of the healthcare sector conditioned their proclamation as insane. This fact had the pernicious impact on the further patients lives as they were doomed to remain in the hospital. The authors provide a number of relevant cases that evidence the importance of social approval and constructs. For instance, Lawrence Marek has to spend all his life in the hospital because of the inability to act in a socially accepted way.

He was proclaimed insane because of the existing approach. There was no some special investigation of the case as Makers mental disorder was evidenced by his strange behavior, and it was enough to isolate him. Yet, the precise analysis of the issue proves that Marek suffered from cultural bewilderment caused by his moving from Austria to the USA.

Altogether, these sources contribute to the better understanding of the social construction of mental disorders. They prove the fact that the subjective social beliefs served as the basis for the isolation and labeling of a person as mentally ill. Additionally, the treatment and approaches used by psychiatrists were not efficient because of the erroneous character of assumptions related to patients cases. The combination of these facts gave rise to a number of concerns related to the negative image of mentally ill people and to the necessity of their isolation.

However, the above-mentioned sources evidence the pernicious effect of labeling and prejudiced attitude as they contribute to the development of alienation and deterioration of self-esteem. In these regards, one realizes the necessity of the reconsideration of the approach towards people with mental disorders and improvement of the comprehension of the given issue. Cultural constructions have an overwhelming impact on all spheres of society; that is why it is crucial to continue their investigation to improve the situation is the system of psychiatric care.

Woks Cited

Jamison, Kay Redfield. An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness. New York: Vintage, 1997. Print.

Hornbacher, Marya. Wasted: A Memoir of Anorexia and Bulimia. New York: HarperCollins, 1999. Print.

Penney, Darby, and Peter Stastny. The Lives They Left Behind: Suitcases from a State Hospital Attic, New York: Bellevue Literary Press, 2008. Print.

Scholinski, Daphne. The Last Time I Wore a Dress. New York: Riverhead Books, 1998. Print.

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The Cultural Construction of Mental Illness

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