Written-Off tells the story of how mental health stigma comes to have a profound impact on the lives of people diagnosed with mental illnesses. It reviews theory, research, and history - illustrated with a multitude of personal stories - in four major areas. These areas are: the prevalence and predictors of negative attitudes and behaviors toward mental illness, the impact of community attitudes and behaviors on the self-perceptions of people diagnosed with mental illness, the impact of self-perceptions on the community participation of people diagnosed with mental illness, and how to change self-perceptions through a variety of approaches.
1. Why stigma matters; 2. Does mental health stigma really exist?; 3. What does stigma look like?; 4. Who stigmatizes?; 5. Responses to stigma among people diagnosed with a mental illness; 6. Discredited: the impact of self-stigma on identity and community participation; 7. Stigma by association: the impact of stigma on family members and professionals; 8. The possibility of change: peer-led options; 9. The possibility of change and interventions: professional options; 10. Where do we go from here?
