Is the definition of mental illness largely driven by social stigmas and/or stereotypes against the mentally ill?
NS: The issue of social stigmas as they relate to mental illness is another interesting point of discussion. Among the rural population, these stigmas become an issue when people believe that a person touched by mental illness has somehow become possessed by evil spirits and hence deserved to be isolated for risk that he or she will “pollute” the healthy surrounding population. In contrast, among the urban middle classes, stigmas are defined on the basis of social yardsticks – personal achievements and career milestones – that serve to define people, rather than immediately visible physical characteristics.Here again however, it is difficult to generalize, because India is changing quickly and those changes will have a profound effect on how people view those with mental illnesses. For example, acceptance levels for those with mental illness among the young is far more today than in previous generations. Still though, we have yet to completely eradicate false beliefs and irrational app
