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7-1 Discussion: Are Psychological Disorders Manifestations of Society & Culture? PSY-215 Abnormal
Psychology
If the scientific community shifted from using labels such as ADHD, anxiety, or PTSD to the definition of
an individual’s response to the environment, society would most likely adapt negatively to the change.
The social stigmatization would be the same, just shifted to a different label. An individual would be
labeled as unable to respond normally to their environment. This is an aspect of disorders that holds
true to their definitions. Even by removing the label of a mental health disorder it will not change
society’s views that it is a problem with the individual themselves. It will just change it from a mental
health problem to a problem that the individual refuses to work on. I believe that society would not
adapt to the change in a positive way. While there is a need for social reform, removing labels would not
cause these social reforms to come about. I feel that it would hinder the need for social reform because
society would view an individual’s abnormal response to their environment as a weakness instead of a
medical condition. It would possibly even increase social stigmatization and social causes of suffering.
The reality is that society will not suddenly adapt to suit an individual person’s need if it does not
positively impact every single person in the society, regardless of adaptive responses. This is because
everyone will not experience these adaptive responses to adversity, and they will therefore be unable to
understand how a person cannot change their own response to environmental stimuli.
There are a number of benefits to having labels for mental health disorders. Having labels allows there
to be diagnostic criteria and treatment plans. This makes it easier for clinicians to discover what is
happening, what causes it, and how to treat it (Garand, et al., 2009). Labels also make it possible for an
individual to understand what they are experiencing and know that they are not alone in having these
experiences. Diagnostic labels also help when researching mental health disorders causal factors and
treatments because the researcher will know exactly what to look for or what needs to be changed.
Labels are also beneficial in allowing the patient and physician to easily communicate (Coelho, 2019).
There are also a number of detriments to having labels for mental health disorders. Labels of mental
health disorder often come with stigmatization and stereotypes. An individual who is diagnosed will
often start to associate themselves with cultural ideals associated with the disorder, which can cause
negative self-image and fear of rejection from society (Garand, et al., 2009). Another detriment is
societal views on mental health disorders. When an individual is labeled with a mental health disorder, it
can cause others to expect the worse of what they think they know of such disorders. This causes social
stigma associated with diagnostic labels.
The concept outlined in the article “Researchers Doubt That Certain Mental Disorders Are Disorders at
All” (Escalante, 2020) applies to the programmatic themes of ethics, career connections, and emotional
intelligence. It applies to ethics because the people who created the study are guided by their own
ethical principles in making a statement on the need to change the way we research mental health. The
concept applies to career connections because it involves studying psychology and knowing what
characteristics are needed to label something a mental disorder. Finally, it applies to emotional
intelligence because it involves and focuses on the ability to perceive the emotions of self and others.
The concept outlined in the article involves self-awareness, self-regulation, ethical judgment, empathy,
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social awareness, and conflict resolution. These are all main characteristics that apply to the
programmatic theme of emotional intelligence.
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References
Coelho, S. (2019, May 03). The benefits and potential drawbacks of mental health labels. Health Life.
https://healthlifemagazine.com/2019/05/03/the-benefits and-potential-drawbacks-of-mental-
health-labels/.
Escalante, A. (2020, August 11). Researchers Doubt That Certain Mental Disorders Are Disorders At All.
Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/alisonescalante/2020/08/11/researchers-doubtthat-
certain-mental-disorders-are-disorders-at-all/?sh=1bb65b2d15a6
Garand, L., Lingler, J. H., Conner, K. O., & Dew, M. A. (2009). Diagnostic labels, stigma, and participation
in research related to dementia and mild cognitive impairment. Research in gerontological
nursing, 2(2), 112–121. https://doi.org/10.3928/19404921-20090401-04
