scholarly journals Identity, mental health and work: How employees with mental health conditions recount stigma and the pejorative discourse of mental illness

2017 ◽  
Vol 71 (5) ◽  
pp. 722-741 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hadar Elraz

This article asks how identity is constructed for individuals with mental health conditions (MHCs) in the workplace. It takes especial regard to how MHCs are discursively situated, constructed and reconstructed in the workplace. Employees with MHCs face a difficult situation: not only do they need to deal with the stigma and discrimination commonly associated with MHCs, but they must also manage their health condition whilst adhering to organizational demands to demonstrate performance and commitment to work. Discourse analysis derived from 32 interviews with individuals with MHCs delineates how these individuals feel both stigmatized and empowered by their MHCs. The findings address three discursive strands: (i) a pejorative construction of mental illness in employment and society; (ii) contesting mental illness at work by embracing mental health management skills; and (iii) recounting mental illness through public disclosure and change. This article enhances understanding of how the construction of positive identity in the face of negative attributions associated with MHCs contributes to literature on identity, organizations and stigma as well as raising implications for policy and practice.

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Signe Heuckendorff ◽  
Martin Nygård Johansen ◽  
Søren Paaske Johnsen ◽  
Charlotte Overgaard ◽  
Kirsten Fonager

Abstract Background Parental mental health conditions have been associated with increased morbidity and use of healthcare services in offspring. Existing studies have not examined different severities of parental mental health conditions, and the impact of paternal mental health has been overlooked. We examined the association between two severities of parental mental health conditions and use of healthcare services for children during the first year of life and explored the impact of both maternal and paternal mental health conditions. Methods This register-based cohort study included all live-born children born in Denmark from 2000 to 2016. Information on socioeconomics, diagnoses, drug prescriptions, and healthcare contacts was extracted from nationwide public registries. Parents were grouped according to severity of mental condition based on the place of treatment of the mental health condition. Negative binominal regression analyses were performed to estimate the incidence rate ratio (IRR) of contacts to general practice (GP), out-of-hour medical service, emergency room (ER), and out- and inpatient hospital contacts during the first 12 months of the child’s life. Results The analyses included 964,395 children. Twenty percent of the mothers and 12 % of the fathers were identified with mental health conditions. Paternal mental health conditions were independently associated with increased risk of infant healthcare contacts (GP IRR 1.05 (CI95% 1.04–1.06) and out-of-hour IRR 1.20 (CI95% 1.18–1.22)). Risks were higher for maternal mental health conditions (GP IRR 1.18 (CI95% 1.17–1.19) and out-of-hour IRR 1.39 (CI95% 1.37–1.41)). The risks were even higher if both parents were classified with a mental health condition (GP IRR 1.25 (CI95% 1.23–1.27) and out-of-hour contacts IRR 1.49 (CI95% 1.45–1.54)), including minor mental health condition (GP IRR 1.22 (CI95% 1.21–1.24) and out-of-hour IRR 1.37 (CI95% 1.34–1.41)). This pattern was the same for all types of healthcare contacts. Conclusions Both maternal and paternal mental health conditions, including minor mental health conditions, were associated with increased utilization of healthcare services. Focus on both parents’ mental health conditions (even if minor) may be warranted in service planning.


2021 ◽  
pp. 140349482110454
Author(s):  
Amanda M.S. Christesen ◽  
Camilla K. Knudsen ◽  
Kirsten Fonager ◽  
Martin N. Johansen ◽  
Signe Heuckendorff

Aim: Parental mental health conditions adversely affect the children. Information on the prevalence of parental mental health conditions is needed to help policymakers allocate resources appropriately. Therefore, the aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of children with parental mental health conditions in Denmark and further estimate the age-specific prevalence and geographical variation. Methods: In this nationwide register-based cross-sectional study, we included all children born between 2000 and 2016 if they resided in Denmark on 31 December 2016. Information on both maternal and paternal mental health conditions was retrieved from primary and secondary healthcare registers. Parental mental health conditions were categorised in three severity groups: minor, moderate, and severe. We estimated the proportion of children with parental mental health conditions on 31 December 2016. Results: Of the 1,106,459 children aged 0–16 years, 39.1% had at least one parent with a mental health condition. The prevalence increased with age of the children until the age of six years. Geographical variation in the prevalence ranged from 29.0% to 48.3% in the 98 municipalities. Minor parental mental health conditions (23.5%) were more common than moderate (13.5%) and severe parental mental health conditions (2.2%). Hospital-diagnosed parental mental health conditions were prevalent in 12.8% of the children. Conclusions: Two in five children aged 0–16 years in Denmark have parents with a mental health condition and geographical variation exists. The high prevalence of children with parental mental health conditions is an important public health challenge, which calls for attention.


Author(s):  
Lewis Cowie ◽  
Luke Hendrickson

By linking Education, Health, and Welfare data in the Multi-Agency Data Integration Project (MADIP), our analysis looked at the impact of poor mental health on the likelihood of completing an undergraduate degree in Australia. IntroductionCompletion of a bachelor degree is important to both the student and the government, as it provides lifelong benefits and prevents investment loss. Previous research has reported conflicting findings regarding whether students with mental ill health are less likely to complete a degree, with an estimated 25 per cent of young adult university students experiencing mental ill-health each year. Objectives and ApproachOur research analysed national mental health service use and related pharmaceutical prescriptions linked with education data to determine the extent and effect of known mental health conditions on undergraduate student six-year completion rates. We followed a de-identified cohort of 120,000 students who commenced an undergraduate degree for the first time in 2011 for six years. Summary statistics and a binomial logit was used on a matched sample to confirm significance. ResultsWe found that students with a known mental health condition had a significantly lower six-year completion rate (58 per cent) than those students with no known mental health condition (71 per cent). By simulating a randomised control trial controlling for a wide range of demographics, we showed that these results held and that completion rates worsened with increasing severity of mental health conditions, as measured by usage of psychiatric services. ConclusionIntegrated data assets such as MADIP help us better understand the interaction between student success and mental health conditions which in turn will help us improve policy and better evaluate programs.


Author(s):  
Charlie Albert Smith ◽  
Lion Shahab ◽  
Ann McNeill ◽  
Sarah E Jackson ◽  
Jamie Brown ◽  
...  

Abstract Introduction E-cigarettes (ECs) may benefit smokers with mental health conditions who are more likely to smoke, and smoke more heavily, than those without mental health conditions. This could be undermined if harm misperceptions in this group are high as is the case in the general population. This study aimed to assess EC harm perceptions relative to cigarettes as a function of mental health status and a variety of characteristics. Methods Data were collected from 6531 current smokers in 2016/2017 in household surveys of representative samples of adults. The associations of mental health status (self-reported mental health condition and past year treatment), smoking and EC use characteristics, and characteristics relating to use of potential information sources with harm perceptions of ECs relative to cigarettes (measured by correct response “less harmful” vs. wrong responses “more harmful,” “equally harmful,” “don’t know”) were analyzed with logistic regression. Results A similar proportion of smokers without mental health conditions (61.5%, 95% CI 60.1–62.9) and with mental health conditions (both with [61.3%, 95% confidence interval [CI] 58.7–63.8] and without past year treatment [61.5%, 95% CI 58.1–64.7]) held inaccurate EC harm perceptions (all P > 0.05). Being female, nonwhite, aged 25–34 compared with 16–24, from lower social grades (C2, D, and E), not having post-16 qualifications, no EC experience, a daily smoker, unmotivated to quit <1 month, non-internet user and non-broadsheet reader were all associated with more inaccurate harm perceptions (all p < .05). Conclusions The majority of smokers in England have inaccurate harm perceptions of ECs regardless of mental health status. Implications This study is the first to use a nationally representative sample in order to investigate whether smokers with and without mental health conditions differ with regard to harm perceptions of ECs. Findings show that the majority of smokers in England hold inaccurate harm perceptions of ECs, and this does not differ as a function of mental health status. A number of characteristics associated with disadvantaged groups were significantly associated with inaccurate harm perceptions. These findings highlight the need to improve awareness and understanding among disadvantaged groups regarding the relative harms of ECs compared with tobacco.


2020 ◽  
Vol 45 (2) ◽  
pp. 81-89
Author(s):  
Hyun-Jin Jun ◽  
Jordan E DeVylder ◽  
Lisa Fedina

Abstract Police violence is reportedly common among those diagnosed with mental disorders characterized by the presence of psychotic symptoms or pronounced emotional lability. Despite the perception that people with mental illness are disproportionately mistreated by the police, there is relatively little empirical research on this topic. A cross-sectional general population survey was administered online in 2017 to 1,000 adults in two eastern U.S. cities to examine the relationship between police violence exposure, mental disorders, and crime involvement. Results from hierarchical logistic regression and mediation analyses revealed that a range of mental health conditions are broadly associated with elevated risk for police violence exposure. Individuals with severe mental illness are more likely than the general population to be physically victimized by police, regardless of their involvement in criminal activities. Most of the excess risk of police violence exposure related to common psychiatric diagnoses was explained by confounding factors including crime involvement. However, crime involvement may necessitate more police contact, but does not necessarily justify victimization or excessive force (particularly sexual and psychological violence). Findings support the need for adequate training for police officers on how to safely interact with people with mental health conditions, particularly severe mental illness.


2015 ◽  
Vol 43 (7) ◽  
pp. 1135-1145 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qian Wang ◽  
Ting Zhou

We examined correlates of mental health conditions among family members and explored the effects of mothers' and fathers' mental health and family functioning on their child's behavioral problems. Participants were 119 couples in China, of whom the majority were parents in 1-child families. These parents reported their own anxiety and depression symptoms, behavioral problems of their child, and perceived family functioning. Results indicated that the mental health condition of the father, mother, and child were closely correlated, and that parental mental health was positively correlated with family functioning. Further, the couples had relatively high consistency in their ratings of family functioning and the child's behavioral problems, with rating discrepancies being positively correlated with mental health conditions. Finally, paternal mental health made a unique contribution to prediction of the child's behavioral problems when father-reported data were used, but this effect was not significant when the mother-reported data were applied.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Signe Heuckendorff ◽  
Martin Nygård Johansen ◽  
Søren Paaske Johnsen ◽  
Charlotte Overgaard ◽  
Kirsten Fonager

Abstract Background Parental mental health conditions have been associated with increased morbidity and use of healthcare services in offspring. Existing studies have not examined different severities of parental mental health conditions, and the impact of paternal mental health has been overlooked.We examined the association between two severities of parental mental health conditions and use of healthcare services for children during the first year of life and explored the impact of both maternal and paternal mental health conditions. Methods This register-based cohort study included all live-born children born in Denmark from 2000-2016. Information on socioeconomics, diagnoses, drug prescriptions, and healthcare contacts was extracted from nationwide public registries. Parents were grouped according to severity of mental condition based on the place of treatment of the mental health condition. Poisson regression analyses were performed to estimate the incidence rate ratio (IRR) of contacts to general practice (GP), out-of-hour medical service, emergency room (ER), and out- and inpatient hospital contacts during the first 12 months of the child’s life.Results The analyses included 964395 children. Twenty percent of the mothers and twelve percent of the fathers were identified with mental health conditions. Paternal mental health conditions were independently associated with increased risk of infant healthcare contacts (GP IRR 1.05 (CI95% 1.04-1.05) and out-of-hour IRR 1.20 (CI95% 1.18-1.21)). Risks were higher for maternal mental health conditions (GP IRR 1.17 (CI95% 1.17-1.18) and out-of-hour IRR 1.38 (CI95% 1.37-1.37)). The risks were even higher if both parents were classified with a mental health condition (GP IRR 1.24 (CI95% 1.23-1.25) and out-of-hour contacts IRR 1.48 (CI95% 1.45-1.51)), including minor mental health condition (GP IRR 1.22 (CI95% 1.22-1.23) and out-of-hour IRR 1.37 (CI95% 1.35-1.39)). This pattern was the same for all types of healthcare contacts.Conclusions Both maternal and paternal mental health conditions, including minor mental health conditions, were associated with increased utilization of healthcare services. Focus on both parents’ mental health conditions (even if minor) may be warranted in service planning.


2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 262-269
Author(s):  
Jennifer Lynn Ostrowski ◽  
Ashley Gray ◽  
Ellen K. Payne ◽  
David Wilkenfeld ◽  
James R. Scifers

Context Mental health is a significant issue in the United States, with approximately 18.5% of adults and 22% of adolescents having a diagnosable mental illness. Athletic trainers are in a prime position to recognize signs of mental health illness in their patients and to facilitate referral to a mental health professional. Objective To introduce interactive approaches for developing mental health first aid and referral skills in professional athletic training students. Background Although the 2020 Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education curricular content standards require programs to educate students about identification and referral for mental health conditions, the standards do not provide specific suggestions for instructing this content. Description Three educational activities have been implemented into the curriculum: an exploratory counseling session, Mental Health First Aid certification, and a standardized patient encounter. Clinical Advantage(s) The exploratory counseling session improves athletic training students' empathy for individuals living with mental illness. The Mental Health First Aid curriculum has been shown to raise awareness of mental health conditions and positively influence the number of people who receive professional help. Standardized patient scenarios have been shown to increase critical thinking and confidence with mental health cases and to increase knowledge in mental health assessment. Conclusion(s) Students' reflections support that these components have increased their competence and confidence in recognizing, intervening, and making referrals for individuals with suspected mental health concerns.


2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (7) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle Mullen ◽  
Deirdre Logan

This is a tough time for everyone. College students have been asked to leave campus and finish the semester remotely, which may not be something they are used to. While this is a hard adjustment for most college students, this change may be more difficult for young adult college students with mental health conditions. Since trying to finish the semester remotely can be a challenge, we’ve collected some tips that may be helpful. Many of these tips are adapted from our Supporting College Students with Mental Health Conditions in the Wake of COVID-19 here on our website. Michelle Mullen also held a webinar Are You a College Student with a Mental Health Condition? Managing the Wake of COVID: Strategies & Tools to Finish Your Semester that you can find here on our website.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mukta Kulkarni

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to describe workplace disclosure dilemmas of individuals with hidden mental health conditions who have privately accepted their mental health condition (anxiety and/or depression), but have chosen not to disclose it in their respective workplaces.Design/methodology/approachInterviews were conducted with 15 individuals who experience anxiety and/or depression. These individuals work across diverse organizations and sectors in India (e.g. architecture and health care). Data were analyzed using qualitative methods.FindingsInterviewees grappled with three dilemmas: professionalism versus authenticity (i.e. bringing only a partial professional self or the whole self to work), withdrawal versus participation (i.e. withdrawal from workplace interactions to conceal their condition or participation such that people could know of it) and personal privacy versus general advocacy (i.e. guarding one's privacy or engaging in advocacy for individuals who experience mental health conditions). Overall, findings suggest that the disclosure dilemma can stem from both one's internalized sense of a devalued self and by perceived contextual cues.Research limitations/implicationsFindings imply that perceived contextual conditions that amplify threat of discovery and its anticipated consequences can lead to and reinforce the disclosure dilemma. As individuals internalize others' constructions of themselves, they self-police and do not interrogate assumed normality within their social contexts.Practical implicationsEmployers can create inclusive environments. Present findings suggest some examples of inclusive practices such as the employment of dedicated resident counselors or counselors shared across organizations, training of stakeholders (including human resource personnel), allowing for selective disclosure (e.g. only to medical personnel) and cultivating informal support networks comprising similar others.Originality/valueSuch evidence-based research that can inform practices of inclusion for persons with a disability is especially important, considering that research on mental health conditions is conspicuous by its relative absence in mainstream management journals.


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