Mental Illness in Today's Society

Paper Summary:

This paper examines how from a sociological perspective, the most realistic method of understanding the effects of mental illness is to explain it as a form of deviance, which from the standpoint of how it is created and perpetuated is more relevant than the medical reasons behind the causes. It relates that mental illness is a unique form of deviance in that it is a justification for other forms of deviant acts, such as crime, violence and even homosexuality, which are then justified as some form of mental illness as substantiated by the increased pleas of insanity in the courtrooms.

From the Paper:

"The behavior found in the mentally ill puts a strain on social relationships, which, in turn, leads to status changes. Overall, mental illness disrupts communication and this disruption can lead to mental illness. As we saw described by Lemert, paranoia is a result of stress in social reactions. Stress can cause a breakdown in normal communication, which will hurt social bonds. Many believe that stress may be a main cause of mental illness, among other diseases. One observation is that social roles in society have differing exposure to stress and thus have a different opportunity to be mentally ill."

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