From all the newspapers in the last seven years in British national newspapers about 348 mentioned ECT or electroconvulsive therapy or electroshock and it’s other synonyms. Overall 111 articles (31,9%) portrayed ECT negatively, 198 articles were neutral and 39 were positive. A substantial comment on ECT was published in 44 (12,6%) articles. The negative comments (14/16) were published in liberal newspapers whereas most positive comments about ECT (10/12) were published in conservative newspapers.
Overall most depictions of ECT were neutral, with smaller numbers of negative (111) and positive (39) representations. Not bad compared to the depiction of ECT in Hollywood movies.
Euba R, & Crugel M (2009). The depiction of electroconvulsive therapy in the British press. The journal of ECT, 25 (4), 265-9 PMID: 19444139
In women’s magazines and health section of the daily paper, there is a shift toward the “medicalization” of deviation from women’s traditional roles, and the increasing description of mental illness in emotional, not medical, terms. Men’s depressive illness remained medical or psychiatric. In popular newspaper and magazine articles about depressive illness, description of women were that of the stereotype of the woman as the mother and wife. White, middle-aged women targets’ problems with marriage, motherhood, or menstruation replaced DSM-derived terms as indicators of the need for psychopharmaceuticals.
These articles were analyzed using established coding methods.The popular articles about depression from a mix of American magazines and newspapers spanning the years 1985–2000 were found by using keywords: ‘‘antidepressant,’’ ‘‘Prozac,’’ or ‘‘SSRI”.
In an interview with the first author this is among others things what he said about the results of this research:
“It’s not that the media are doing a bad job covering these issues, but rather that gender stereotypes are pervading the way we talk about mental illness – for better or for worse,” says Metzl, an assistant professor of psychiatry and director of the Program in Culture, Health and Medicine at the U-M Medical School and an assistant professor of Women’s Studies.
“ Stereotypes are, of course, often based in lived experience,” he continues. “But at the same time, many articles implied that people who don’t adhere to these stereotypes need to be medicated.”
Why is this important?
Because it makes clear that depression is a serious diagnosis, to be looked at from the context and diagnosed by a professional.
For example, a woman with undiagnosed depression may recognize some of her own symptoms in a magazine article about another woman whose depression interfered with her marriage, and who got help from medication. But a woman whose marriage is on the rocks for reasons other than depression may read the same article and perceive that the medication could help her, when in fact it probably won’t.
In pictures in the 2 largest medical journals in Sweden over a period of 1 year the majority (64%) of women doctors were dressed in white coats. The majority of male doctors (59%) appeared in civil dress.
The next post in the series Mass Media and Psychiatry is about ECT in mass media and will be posted Monday August 18th.
J Metzl (2004). Assessing the impact of SSRI antidepressants on popular notions of women’s depressive illness Social Science & Medicine, 58 (3), 577-584 DOI: 10.1016/S0277-9536(03)00369-1
This is the second post about mass media and psychiatry. The best and most informative news stories about depression are interviews with lay persons that suffer of have suffered this illness. Little attention has been paid to personal life stories about depression and to a gender perspective. The studies that have been done have focused primarily on women. The gendered representation of experiences with depression by men and women in three major Swedish newspapers showed differences and similarities between men and women.
The women’s stories were more detailed, relational, emotionally oriented, and embodied. The portrayal of men was less emotional and expressive, and described a more dramatic onset of depression, reflecting hegemonic patterns of masculinity.
More precisely:
Only sparse information was presented about the men’s personal and private lives, whereas women’s backgrounds were portrayed in a more rich and colorful way, with explicit details about both their private and working lives
Both the men and the women in the newspaper articles about depression appear on the
surface to be successful high performers with functioning social networks
In the stories women also expressed feelings of being lost and not knowing who they were and what they wanted. They did not feel that they fitted in. Moreover stories of women illustrated a hidden inside, where true feelings were concealed beneath an intact exterior or facade (the crackling facade). In contrast men were portrayed as paying less attention to their inner feelings
Differences between men and women on the narratives of how the depression started and developed. Among the men, loss of control was associated with the subcategories of “sudden onset,” “physical collapse,” “confusion,” “vulnerability,” and “passivity,” and among women, the depression started and developed with the somewhat contrasting subcategories of “insidious onset,” “embodied feelings,” and “shame and guilt.”
In the newspaper stories men had few explanations for the depression. For men the only stated reasons for succumbing to depression seemed to be work- and stress-related. Most stories of women had plenty of explanations. The explanations involved a large set of reasons, which were sometimes interwoven:
work overload and stress, sometimes caused by high demands
seasonal changes and dysfunctional relationships as causal factors
biological or physiological factors were commonly referred to in relation the expalnation of the depression. These factors included reproduction (e.g., menstrual and postpartum depression) and hormone levels
Stories of depression in women were also sometimes situated by these women within a larger medical context through references to other ailments and illnesses (e.g., eating disorders, dysphoric syndrome, psychosis, and manic depression) and to the use of various medications (e.g., painkillers, sedatives, anxiolytics, sleeping pills, and contraceptives). Some women also located the reasons for their depression within themselves, referring to specific personality types
In contemporary societies mass media such as newspapers are important providers of information about depression. Information about depression in the mass media might influence behavior related to various aspects of health and illness. These stories might guide other sufferers of depression, be of advise or bring hope and de-stigmatize depression.
The researchers analyzed 26 eligible articles from three Swedish newspapers using qualitative
content analysis.
The material included 14 personal stories, all presented in full-page articles; four celebrity stories; and eight letters to the editor. Three of the articles contained two different accounts, with the result that we could study 29 different individuals’ stories of depression. Twenty one of these
individuals were women and eight were men.
Why is this important?
This study not only shows that certain traditional gender norms still persist in mass media representation of men and women suffering from depression, it also challenges some of these gender norms. For instance the presentation of men as passive and vulnerable, as well as the fact that the men expressed a sense of loss of control with few attempts to regain it. This should be viewed as an expansion of positive masculine qualities. Negative stereotypes such as violence are not mentioned in these stories. Such stories might be particularly important when those presented as suffering from depression are men, for men’s stories are not as frequently shared. New media such as the Internet can also be used as communication and education tools for people affected by stigmatizing illnesses.
What do you think, let me know in the comments, is “news” about depression in the newspapers good news?
The next post on mass media and depression in women will be next Friday, August the 15th.
C. Bengs, E. Johansson, U. Danielsson, A. Lehti, A. Hammarstrom (2008). Gendered Portraits of Depression in Swedish Newspapers Qualitative Health Research, 18 (7), 962-973 DOI: 10.1177/1049732308319825
This is the first post about mass media and psychiatry. Trends in the newspapers in the United States on reporting topics of mental illness:
Most stories in newspapers in relation to mental illness were mostly about dangerousness (39%). Not danger to others but mostly stories with text related to violent crime (25%). Thirteen percent of the stories were related to suicidal or self-injurious behavior, only 4% dealt with mental illness as a variable related to being victimized by crime. These stories were mostly on the front page increasing impact. Stories in the entertainment section did not focus on dangerousness more often than other sections
Causes mentioned in newspaper articles for developing a mental illness:
parental misbehavior (2 percent)
fewer stories blamed mentally ill persons for their illness (less than 1 percent)
Five percent of the stories discussed genetic or biological causes
Most stories dealt with environmental causes (10 percent), including trauma and job stress
Stories about genetic causes were most frequently found in the health section (14 of 160 stories, or 9 percent)
Stories about environmental causes were frequently seen in the lifestyle section (31 of 332 stories, or 9 percent) and the health section (eight of 332 stories, or 2 percent)
Twenty-six percent of stories were related to treatment and recovery. Most were about biological treatments (13 percent) and psychosocial treatments (14 percent). In terms of frequency, most stories about research and treatment were found in the health section of newspapers. Biological treatments were also prominently discussed in the front section and, interestingly, in the business section.
Stories that could support patients with mental illness were twenty percent of all articles. The single largest theme was shortage of resources; these themes were most prevalent in editorials and opinion pieces. Five percent of stories were related to poor quality of treatment. Themes on housing and homelessness were present in 6 percent of stories. Even though insurance parity is a prominent issue on the agenda for mental health advocacy, only 2 percent of articles dealt with this theme, if you are looking to get insured with this condition there are several health insurance companies who gives Best Medicare supplement plans 2020 that can help you
How? All U.S. newspapers with daily circulation greater than 250,000 were selected for our study or in states without such large editions the largest newspaper was selected. All relevant stories (N=3,353) in large U.S. newspapers were identified and coded during six week long periods in 2002.
Why is it important? The public is still being influenced with messages in newspapers about mental illness and dangerousness mostly on the front page.
However, when these numbers are considered in terms of base rates, one finds mental illness to be a poorer predictor of violence than demographic variables, such as age, gender, and race or ethnicity……Yet the public is more likely to view people with mental illness as dangerous
Instead of focusing on personal or parental blame, stories seemed to focus on biological or mostly environmental causes, while in research the brain has become the focus of recent interest and development especially neuroscience. Treatment and recovery are also an important topic in articles in newspapers. Sometime these mental issues from you or someone you know could be a liability to the public if left untreated. if you need public liability insurance, visit constructaquote.com in the event something horrible happens to you or your loved one struggling with issues.
So this is my plea, if you or someone you know (In my head I am saying this in Morgan Freeman’s voice) are suffering from depression SHOUT IT OUT! Depression and mental illness are REAL and can result in death. Mental health issues are not something to be swept under the rug or whispered about in the corner. Do I know the miracle cure for depression? No. But I do know that for many being active helps, eating healthy, sleeping regularly, being involved with community and family are all helps. I think one of the best things we can do for ourselves or our loved ones who suffer with mental illness is to get rid of the stigmas that surround it. There should be no feelings of embarrassment or shame, if you had cancer or another terminal illness would you be embarrassed?? Hell no! You would fight to stay alive. As a matter of fact there would probably be a Go Fund Me account being set up for you as I type! If your family members, loved ones or friends show signs of depression do not ignore it, do not think that it will go away on its own, do not think that because someone who has suffered with depression and is suddenly “happy” that they are “cured”. My son seemed happier in the last months leading up to his death than he had been in the past few years. Looking back now, we thought things were getting better and THAT was the BIGGEST misconception of all. He was happy because he had made piece with his decision and had a plan. He was suffering in silence like many people who have mental health issues do. Do not be silent. Silence kills. If you plan to get a Life Insurance then visit http://moneyepert.com/ for more details.
Limitations This research only used a search in large newspapers. The selection of stories was than judged with only four themes. or this article you can learn more about Terminal Mental Illness Life Cover Quotes
Nevertheless stories about mental illness and dangerousness and crime are waning compared to previous research. Focus has shifted from personal and parental blame to genetic and environmental causes which is a good thing. This kind of research has to be repeated in the near future do discover trends of stories on mental illness in mass media.
Next post in this series will be on Wednesday August 13th about A Portrait of Depression in the Mass Media, Gender Influences.
Patrick W. Corrigan, Psy.D., Amy C. Watson, Ph.D., Gabriela Gracia, B.A., B.S., Natalie Slopen, A.M., Kenneth Rasinski, Ph.D., Laura L. Hall, Ph.D. (2005). Newspaper Stories as Measures of Structural Stigma Psychiatric Services, 56 (5), 551-556 DOI: 15872163
