Event Details

Philosophy talk and discussion.

The slogan “end the stigma” has become pervasive in mental health contexts. It makes what sounds like a straightforward suggestion: if we can counter social prejudices about mental illness then we will be able to address mental illness more effectively and humanely. It conceptualizes stigma as unjustified and undesirable social attitudes towards particular classes of persons. Removing stigma is then like cleaning the dirt off of a painting, making it possible for us to see what “really” underlies without judgment. I will argue that this metaphor is misleading, and that stigma is entangled more deeply, shaping the actual categories of persons to whom stigma has been historically directed. Furthermore, stigma is a slippery beast that is often imperfectly managed by efforts to remove it that implicitly result in further stigmatization of some or all mental health conditions. It is not easy, and may not even be possible, to “end the stigma.” Stigma is not added to some neutral medical categories by a prejudiced society; rather, stigma was involved in making the categories themselves. Stigma is the most important social force shaping concepts of psychiatric disorder. It is helpful to know this in current debates about particular psychiatric disorders and the meaning of psychiatric disorder.