This Time It's Personal: The Effects of Language Choice on Stigma Reduction

Presenter Information

Casey BrughFollow

Academic Level at Time of Presentation

Senior

Major

Psychology

Minor

Sociology (2nd Major)

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Dr. Joyce

Presentation Format

Oral Presentation

Abstract/Description

It is very common for the public to view individuals with mental illness in discriminatory and negative ways (Masuda, Price, Anderson, Schmertz, and Alamaras, 2009). This stigma may also cause individuals to shy away from treatment, because they feel like they are "crazy" or beyond help; treatment for those who feel stigmatized is also less effective (US Department of Health and Human Services, 1999). This stigma is believed to come from a lack of understanding. Research indicates that those who are less familiar with mental illness exhibit greater levels of stigma (Feeg, Prager, Moylan, Smith, and Cullinan, 2014). Research also supports the idea that this stigma can be reduced though psychoeducation (Brugh & Joyce, 2017). This study is a continuation of a previous study (Brugh & Joyce, 2017), and it examines the effect of psychoeducation on stigma by slightly altering the methodology of the previous study in order to better explore the impact of the tone of the psychoeducation. This study presents individuals with a vignette of a girl with pica and either describes just her symptoms, her disorder through her perspective, or a clinical description of her disorder. This study seeks to determine whether or not a personal or clinical description of the disorder is more effective at reducing symptoms.

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This Time It's Personal: The Effects of Language Choice on Stigma Reduction

It is very common for the public to view individuals with mental illness in discriminatory and negative ways (Masuda, Price, Anderson, Schmertz, and Alamaras, 2009). This stigma may also cause individuals to shy away from treatment, because they feel like they are "crazy" or beyond help; treatment for those who feel stigmatized is also less effective (US Department of Health and Human Services, 1999). This stigma is believed to come from a lack of understanding. Research indicates that those who are less familiar with mental illness exhibit greater levels of stigma (Feeg, Prager, Moylan, Smith, and Cullinan, 2014). Research also supports the idea that this stigma can be reduced though psychoeducation (Brugh & Joyce, 2017). This study is a continuation of a previous study (Brugh & Joyce, 2017), and it examines the effect of psychoeducation on stigma by slightly altering the methodology of the previous study in order to better explore the impact of the tone of the psychoeducation. This study presents individuals with a vignette of a girl with pica and either describes just her symptoms, her disorder through her perspective, or a clinical description of her disorder. This study seeks to determine whether or not a personal or clinical description of the disorder is more effective at reducing symptoms.