Disease and discrimination: Two paradigms that describe severe mental illness

Abstract

Disease and discrimination are two different paradigms that describe severe psychiatric disorders. Divergent views about mental illness have practical implications; people with severe mental illness may be exposed to conflicting paradigms and thus confused about appropriate intervention. The purpose of this paper is to highlight differences between the two paradigms. In particular, important differences exist in the fundamental assumptions about severe psychiatric disorders and in the epistemology that examines these assumptions. Practical differences that result from these fundamental assumptions are also discussed including divergent views about the nature of care, venues of care, and prognosis.