Gateways to Mental Illness Discourse: Tools for Talking with Teenagers

Abstract

The existence of mental health discrimination is well-documented, and research suggests that negative attitudes to mental illness are particularly prevalent among adolescents. While recent years have seen much activity aiming to reduce this discrimination, little of it has been targeted at young people or based in schools. The first stage of targeted anti-discrimination enterprise must be to understand the current views of the target group. However, research into how young people construct and occupy mental illness discourse is sparse. In this qualitative study, the ways in which adolescents construct understandings of mental illness are explored, using an innovative photovignette technique. Eighteen young people aged 14—18 participated. The photo-vignette method enabled participants to engage with figurative narratives of mental illness, and responses indicated that life history explanations for mental illness helped young people adopt non-discriminatory positions. These findings are considered in relation to the development of strategies for reducing mental health discrimination through education.

Keywords:

• mental illness
• discrimination
• stigma
• education
• adolescents
• photo-vignettes
• figurative narratives