Sociological Explanation of Poverty and Social Exclusion of the Mentally Ill - Essay Example

Sociological Explanation of poverty and social exclusion of the mentally ill   Introduction Poverty is defined as the shortage of resources and includes powerlessness, exclusion and loss of dignity with the lack of adequate income at its heart. Poverty is common among people with mental health problems in the UK. Coupled with the stigmatisation that accompanies the diagnosis of mental illness, poverty is extremely powerful in limiting choices, power and opportunities for people with mental illness (Hudson and Moore, 2009). Social exclusion is a situation that arises when people are denied the rights and opportunities that others are granted. For instance, people on welfare benefits are not allowed to have bank accounts and, therefore, experience financial exclusion. Other people can be excluded from building and sustaining relationships because of a lack of money to travel or make phone calls (Pierson and Thomas, 2010). This paper evaluates the effects of poverty on the mentally ill and the correlation between mental health and social exclusion. The vicious cycle People who are diagnosed with mental illness have increased likelihood of experiencing poverty since the diagnosis dramatically reduces the chances of obtaining employment. Poverty contributes to the social exclusion experienced by people with mental illness since it limits their participation in the wider society and denies them opportunities to develop their talents and contribute actively in society (Welshman, 2007). Poverty and social exclusion are engaged in a vicious cycle where mental health contributes to social exclusion while isolation exposes one to the risk of mental health. More people with mental illness contemplate or commit suicide than those who are mentally healthy. People with mental illness have increased sickness absence; change jobs more often and are more likely to experience unemployment (Lister, 2011). Living with poverty increases the chances of experiencing mental illness due to the psychological and social stresses associated with managing debt and low income. Poverty significantly contributes to social exclusion. Researchers agree on the fact that people who experience social exclusion and poverty as a result of stigma, discrimination and prejudice are more vulnerable to mental illness. The deprivation and exclusion associated with poverty causes stress and distress which undermines physical and mental well-being (Yuill and Gibson, 2011). Research indicates that children living in families that struggle with poverty are vulnerable to mental health problems. There is a strong relationship between psychiatric hospital admission and the social class of an individual. Those in the lowest class have the highest proportion of people diagnosed with mental illness. The group with the highest risk of mental illness is that which experiences poverty through homelessness and imprisonment. The economic and social exclusion of minority ethnic communities in the UK increases their vulnerability to mental distress (Pierson, 2010). For most people of working age, a suffering from mental illness negatively impacts their income. Such a diagnosis can result in loss of employment and the consequent fall in income. Mentally ill people also experience discrimination in accessing well-paying jobs. As a result, mental heath patients are among the poorest in the UK. A recent survey of mental health users found that only 10% were in paid employment (Berthold-Bond, 1995). The high level of exclusion from employment means that these people will be on poverty-level retirement pensions since they cannot access sufficient contributions in private pension schemes. Majority of mental health service users can only obtain their income from the social security benefits system. The limited benefit rates together with restriction placed by the system on people with mental illness having choices about employment, education and housing traps them in desperate long-term poverty (Mary, 2011). Over 1.1million people in the UK seek secondary mental health services annually with 136 000 having a serious mental health condition and requiring support to access sustainable employment. Over 2.2 million people with mental health problems in the UK are on benefits or out of work with 1.3 million having a serious mental health condition (Kokayi, et al, 2007). Mental illness is the most common reason for claiming health-related benefits with 42% of the 2.6 million people claiming health-related unemployment benefits doing so because of a mental health condition. Other patients with secondary mental health condition are unable to work or return to the workplace. Only 16% of people with mental illness engage in gainful employment compared to 72.5% rate for healthy people. This condition is not bound to improve with less than 40% of employers in the UK willing employ mentally ill people compared to 62% who would consider recruiting people with a physical disability (Cree, 2010). Labeling theory The labeling theory maintains that the label of mental illness promotes social conditions that perpetuate illness behavior. There is extensive documentation of social stigma applied to people with mental illness and substantial evidence that the stigmatisation is detrimental to an individual’s well-being, self-esteem, support networks and employment opportunities. Persons with mental illness experience negative adjustment outcomes associated with stigma and, which include low self-esteem, social withdrawal, and exacerbation of the existing disorder or illness relapse (Ravenhill, 2008). Low self-esteem has been hypothesized to limit a person’s social and psychological adjustment, thereby, limiting employment opportunities and overall well-being. The stigmatized status of the psychiatric patient adversely affects his/her social interactions with neighbors and their sense of belonging (Giddens and Sutton, 2013). Research indicates that mentally ill members of the nobility and elites are given superior treatment compared to poor persons who are exposed to harsher realities. For instance, in the Jewish tradition, poor mentally ill individuals were humiliated or stoned on the streets, whereas the affluent persons were cared for in protective isolation. Several researchers have noted a public tendency to reject people with deviant behaviors perceiving them as problematic. Other researchers found stigmatisation to compromise employment and housing options for the mentally ill (Levitas, 2005). Although there is increased verbal acceptance and decreased visible discrimination of the mentally ill, less visible and more subtle forms of discrimination are prevalent. People with mental illnesses often cope with multiple stigmas, in addition to mental illness, including poverty, homelessness, unemployment, substance abuse and public fear. The stigmatizing attitudes are often exacerbated by the media and perpetuated by mental health professionals. Therefore, mentally ill people experience rejection on a wide range of social jurisdictions (Whitley, 2005). Link in his work on the mentally ill found that the persons whom the public had labelled mentally ill had less income and were more likely to experience underemployment compared to others who were similarly impaired, but were unlabeled. Other researchers found that labeling was associated with negative societal reactions that in turn, exacerbated the person’s disorder. Poverty may also cause labeling as some people attribute mental illness to certain appearances such as being unkempt, which is common among the poor and the homelessness (Gunewardena, 2008). Functionalism theory Functionalism is a perspective in sociology that interprets society as a structure with constituent parts. It addresses society in terms of the functions of its constituent elements such as norms, customs, traditions and institutions. The functional causes of social exclusion in the UK are those that individuals have limited control of. Foucault observed that institutions were invented by the mainstream society to restrict the mentally ill so as to control and subdue the potential threat they pose to the established social order (Spiers, 1999). Bourdieu argues that social networks are fundamental in the development of pathways to socioeconomic factors such as employment, financial resources and other resources that enable people to prosper in the society. But these opportunities are denied to the mentally ill through network exclusion and exacerbated by media hyperbole and stereotypes (Webster; et al, 2011). Other studies reveal that exclusion from social networks and social support causes feelings of alienation and functional impairment denying the victims access to services and health promoting information. Networks of the mentally ill tend to shrink since others are fearful of them or fear being associated with people who are stigmatized by mainstream society (Covington, 2008). Socioeconomic exclusion is especially hard-hitting for the mentally ill as even in times of economic opportunity their illness may prevent from accessing employment. In the absence of adequate government or communal provision, they descend to the worst housing or neighborhoods and end up barred from the pleasures offered in the mainstream society. Institutional exclusion of the mentally ill could occur in places where the staff and users at local facilities or amenities such as libraries, schools or churches are not tolerant of them (Stannard-Friel, 2005). Similarly, institutions such as the legislature could bar them from participating in the democratic process, practising in certain professions or holding certain public offices. While there are government provisions against discrimination, these practices happen at the local level where prejudice and stigma are deeply embedded (Hudson and Moore, 2009). Conclusion The poverty and social exclusion associated with the mentally ill can be described as structural since there exist structural and institutional forces that isolate them. These structures are manifested in variables such as denial of economic opportunity, decent housing, access to healthcare and education. The negative cultural and sub cultural practices and beliefs are beyond the control of individual mental illness patients and are the primary causes of poverty and isolation among the mentally ill. Bibliography: Pierson, J. and Thomas, M., 2010. Dictionary of Social Work. 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Albany: State Univ. of New York Press Hudson, A. and Moore, L., 2009. Caring for Older People in the Community. Chichester: John Wiley & Sons. Welshman, J., (2007). From transmitted deprivation to social exclusion: policy, poverty and parenting. Bristol: Policy. Blau, J. and Abramovitz, M., 2007. The dynamics of social welfare policy. Oxford: Oxford university press. Read More