Monday, November 11, 2013
The Media's Portrayal of Schizophrenia and How it Affects the General Public's Understanding of this Condition
Watch this video and then respond to the following questions. What do you know about schizophrenia and how did you learn it? What did you know about, or what was your understanding of, schizophrenia before enrolling in this course? In your experience, how is schizophrenia (and mental illness in general) portrayed in the mainstream media? What misconceptions or stereotypes do you believe exist in the minds of the average American in regards to schizophrenia and what role has the media played in developing or perpetuating these misconceptions? How should we, as a society, go about deconstructing the myths surrounding this disorder?
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ReplyDeleteSchizophrenia is a mental illness which can cause people to hear voices, have delusions, have hallucinations, develop bizarre behaviors, develop speaking trouble, or even lose motivation or interest in activities they once loved. This mental illness usually involves trouble distinguishing reality from imagination. I learned most of this in psychology class and from the homework we had on schizophrenia. Before enrolling in this class I didn’t really have knowledge about the subject of schizophrenia. I did know that schizophrenia was a mental illness that caused people to have trouble sorting out their thoughts. I knew that subjects of this illness had something going on inside them that caused them to become distant from the real world. I didn’t know any details or the extremes this illness has. In the mainstream media schizophrenia, as well as any mental illness, is portrayed in a violent and harsh manner. Media only provides us with the worst possible outcomes of a mental illness, such as the person going on a shooting rampage. Television never shows its watchers how some people have learned to live with a disease such as schizophrenia, because producers don’t find this as intriguing and entertaining. Because of media’s influence on society many people develop misconceptions or stereotypes of schizophrenia. Many people believe that subjects of schizophrenia are either violent, criminals, unable to function, or crazy. It is a possibility that these characteristics can be found in certain people with schizophrenia. However, there is also a possibility that the person is taking medicine and is learning to live a normal life again, or never had any of these stereotypes. This misconception is caused by the negativity put on mental illnesses from media. As a society we should try to spread awareness of schizophrenia. We should try to block out all of the media’s influence and look into the disease ourselves, so we can create our own opinion. We can’t form a false understanding of schizophrenia from the severe schizophrenic cases that are displayed in media. There is a lot more to schizophrenia then the short clips we see on television and people need to become aware of this.
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ReplyDeleteI know that schizophrenia is when you have hallucinations happening in your mind and you can’t tell the hallucinations apart from reality. I also learned that it is sometimes very difficult to communicate and deal with schizophrenic people because their medications might not be working correct that day or they forgot to take them. Another thing I learned is that there are 2.2 million people in the United States that suffer from schizophrenia. I learned most of this information from class and the homework about schizophrenia, but I also learned some of this information from the video that I just watched. Before enrolling in this course I did not know anything in depth about schizophrenia. I only knew the things that I had heard from other people, which wasn’t that much and I wasn’t very sure they were all correct. I had heard that schizophrenic people were crazy and scary and you didn’t ever want to be around them because they could hurt you. In my experience schizophrenia and all other mental illnesses are portrayed in the mainstream media as horrible and not controllable. Also sometimes the media portrays any mental illness as being “fake” and the people are just making everything up. The misconceptions or stereotypes I believe exist in the minds of the average American in regards to schizophrenia are that all schizophrenic people are harmful and can’t be trusted. This is a misconception because schizophrenic is different for everybody that has it and also their medication can help them be more “normal” if they take it on a regular basis. The role that media has played in developing or perpetuating these misconceptions are that they only show the bad days or bad things that schizophrenic people do or have. The media never or rarely shows when a schizophrenic person is doing well and isn’t having any or very little issues. Society should go about deconstructing the myths surrounding this disorder by having something in some type of media show the good things about a schizophrenic person. We should hear about how well they have improved and changed since they started taking their medication and starting controlling their illness. If we only heard the bad things about all the people around us and the things around us, we would always be scared of everything and never want to be around anybody or anything.
ReplyDeleteI know that Schizophrenia is a mental disorder that makes it difficult or impossible for an individual with the illness to distinguish their hallucinations from reality. Schizophrenics often hear voices that aren’t actually there, have hallucinations, develop a drastic change in personality, no longer have the ability to carry on a conversation, and are not able to make sense when they talk. Before enrolling into this psychology course, I did not know very much about Schizophrenia. I knew the general idea of it, like individuals with the disorder have hallucinations and see and hear things that aren’t actually there. However, I just thought that the people with the disorder were psychotic and I didn’t know the more complex details about it. For example, I was not aware that people had no control over if they would develop the disorder or not. I just remember hearing stories on the news such as the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School. The man that did the shooting was Schizophrenic and I thought that all Schizophrenics were like that; violent and psychotic. From my experience, I’ve always witnessed Schizophrenia and other mental diseases that are portrayed in the mainstream media, as the individual with the illness as being “crazy,” and psychotic. The media only shows the main headline stories, such as shootings, which are usually always violent. They don’t distinguish that other individuals with the same mental disorders may be the complete opposite. Because of what I’ve seen about Schizophrenia through the media, I was not aware that not all Schizophrenics were violent and psychotic. People need to realize that the media shows the stories that will “sell” to their audience. We, as a society, need to better educate ourselves on the topic of Schizophrenia and also on all of the other misconceived mental disorders in order to go about deconstructing the myths about the disorders.
ReplyDeleteHad I not taken psychology, I probably would be one of those people who if asked what schizophrenia is, would have been very unsure and simply said, " Oh well...ummm....crazy people have it." This doesn't just reflect my lack of education and knowledge about people living with mental disabilities, but it reflects all of society. Psychology has informed me of all of the facts and Schizophrenia is a disorder characterized by mental and auditory illusions, drastic change in emotions, and paranoia. Left untreated, this conditions can quickly spiral into a seemingly uncontrollable state. However, the media portrays all schizophrenics as out of control monsters who are out for blood. This portrayal is evident in many television shows, scary movies, and even news stories. The only people we hear about on news broadcasts who have schizophrenia are on trial or being sent to jail for murder or other heinous crimes. This has left people with a very tainted knowledge of the average human being living with schizophrenia. Properly medicated and under hospital assistance or supervision, schizophrenics have control over their illness, depending on the type and severity of the condition. Most schizophrenics aren't blood thirsty demons, rather regular people having to deal with the obstacles of delusions and paranoia. I believe that before producers , directors, or news broadcasters decide to include any characterization of schizophrenia, they should get their facts straight and do some research. If the media can correct itself, so can the average American. This type of portrayal of a mental condition such as Schizophrenia, is like any other prejudice. We as citizens should work to clear up all the misconceptions and start treating people with mental disorders, with the dignity, respect, and care every American expects.
ReplyDeleteSchizophrenia is a neurological disorder that can cause people to hear degrading voices, experience hallucinations and delusions, have trouble with thought processes, lack emotion, begin withdrawing socially, and become increasingly violent towards other individuals and themselves. I learned the majority of this information from psychology class and the homework we completed on this neurological disorder. Before enrolling in this course I had heard about people being "schizo," but never fully understood what it meant to have schizophrenia, so I decided to research it. I didn't read that much into the topic, but I researched just enough to get the general concept of this disorder. I also heard quite a bit about it from television programs and movies where actors portrayed patients with schizophrenia. However, my general understanding of this mental disorder was that people with it talked to themselves, heard voices, and could become exceedingly aggressive at times. In the media, schizophrenia isn't portrayed correctly. Directors and producers just want the views, so they'll do anything to make a television program or movie more exciting, including exaggerating the symptoms of someone who has developed schizophrenia. Often times, a schizophrenic is illustrated as a "crazy person" who talks to themselves and is violent the majority of the time. Television generally exhibits people with a disorder as unable to function normally in society, which may be true for some, but not all people who develop a mental illness. The stereotypes and misconceptions that surround schizophrenia are quite vast and large. The majority of Americans view schizophrenia with a negative connotation; they see schizophrenics as crazy lunatics who need to be locked away in an asylum. They don't visualize them as people who have developed a mind-altering disorder that can potentially be controlled with medical assistance, but people who they have come to fear and steer clear of. These stereotypes and misconceptions thrive because of the media's influence on the average American. Television programs and movies do nothing to quell the fears of the people when it comes to schizophrenics. The way that directors and producers portray patients who have developed this neurological disorder continues to make people believe in the stereotypes and misconceptions swirling around. They only tend to increase the production of the misunderstandings about schizophrenia. As a society, we should inform people on the reality when it comes to this disorder. We should start with the media, by actually portraying schizophrenia for what it is and the actual symptoms without any exaggerations. Perhaps, the average American wouldn't become as afraid of schizophrenics and any person with a mental disorder. If the media's influence was positive instead of negative, then the stereotypes and misconceptions would slowly start to disappear. Then, and only then, will people start to view schizophrenia for what it really is, a neurological disorder that can happen to any person on the planet. We need to start understanding this disorder more and not just believe everything that is spread by the media's influence.
ReplyDeleteI know that Schizophrenia is a neurological disorder. It causes a range of symptoms from delusions to symptoms that cause social and personal dysfunction. It can be treated with medication but sometimes it doesn’t work. I learned it from reading my mother’s textbooks, reliable websites and the DSM-IV-TR. My understanding of Schizophrenia is that it is a neurological disorder and that the person is neither crazy nor dangerous unless it is a serve case. The symptoms vary with each case, also that they range from delusions to symptoms that cause social and personal dysfunction. In the media Schizophrenia and other mental illness are portrayed as these awful things and anyone with them should be secluded. The person is probably dangerous and should be kept away from. The person is also easily recognizable. The common misconceptions that Americans have of people who Schizophrenia are that they are crazy and dangerous. They can’t be “normal” and should be left alone. The media has created a horror of an image in the average American mind as to what Schizophrenics are. . The media mostly shows all of the bad in the world and this is no exception for people with Schizophrenia. They portray them as dangerous and violent. When a story of a person who has Schizophrenia ends up on the news it’s because they hurt someone. We should educate more people about the disorder. We should make more documentaries about the disorder. We should also make it easier for people to experience what it would be like to be a Schizophrenic because then they could understand and be more aware.
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ReplyDeleteIf you had asked me what Schizophrenia was before starting this class, my answer would have been similar to the ignorant answers given at the beginning of the video. I would have said something like, “Schizophrenia is when you go crazy and hurt people, I guess.” . After being in Mr. Bruce’s class for one marking period, I now know much more.
ReplyDeleteI know that Schizophrenia is a mental illness that often involves hallucinations of any of the five senses. An audio hallucination, for example, can cause a person to hear voices in their head. Schizophrenia also causes someone to lose the ability to tell the difference between reality and their hallucinations. I guess part of the reason I, and much of the public, had/have this misconception about Schizophrenia was that most of what I/they have learned about this mental illness was taught from the media. The media often portrays Schizophrenics as being violent and ill-tempered.
Now that I know more about the disease I actually find the media portrayal of it offensive. This feeling of offensiveness is intensified when I hear stories about people like Karen White. Karen has a brother, named Brian, with Schizophrenia. This affects not only Brian but his whole family as well. Any family who has a member who suffers from this illness, or any mental illness for that matter, is severely affected by it. Because of this difficulty in millions of Americans’ lives, I wish the average person had a better idea of what schizophrenia is and how it affects those who have it and those around them.
Before I enrolled in this class I knew quite a bit about schizophrenia. I knew about it, very intimately, because my second cousin Jim has the disease. I knew that it causes you to have hallucinations or delusions, paranoia, and for you to not be able to differentiate between reality and fiction. I knew most of this through our family. I also knew that with medication some schizophrenics can control their illness. My cousin, who lives with his daughter, is given his medication and is fairly stable. When I entered this class I hoped to gain an even better understanding of this disease so I could talk to my elderly family members about Jim’s condition. My father told me, who was close with Jim when he was diagnosed, that Jim’s mother, my great-aunt, believed Jim was possessed. There are many misconceptions about schizophrenia that carried by the media. One is that all schizophrenics are violent. This is far from true. The media does not publicize when schizophrenics, such as my cousin, can control their illness well. They only show when a schizophrenic does something violent to either themselves or others. By having the media show that people become afraid of the mentally ill. This is the last thing that should happen. People who are schizophrenic already feel alone because they hear voices that aren’t coming from someone in the room. By ostracizing the mentally ill, society and the media, have only heightened the issue. The mentally ill need to have support so they never get to the point of violence. Society cannot grasp that. In the future I feel that people need to be exposed and educated. Putting out PSA’s on television and holding free seminars. Getting out the message that schizophrenics, and all mentally ill, are not to be cast out. They are not, as my great-aunt thought, demonic. They are human beings. They are people who desperately need help. And usually receive the least because they are looked down upon. Our society must let go this idea of judging and condemning. We must learn to embrace and understand.
ReplyDeleteSchizophrenia is a mental disorder that makes it hard to, Tell the difference between what is real and not real; Think clearly; Have normal emotional responses; Act normally in social situations. Before coming into this course I honestly didn't know much about schizophrenia. I Did know that it doesn't always make you a violent person. That is about all i knew before coming to this class. Schizophrenia is betrayed in movies by making them all seem crazy and violent. I think that its awful and mean because in the video like the lady says, they are people of or society and they shouldn't be treated like that. I think That the stereotypes that are going around about people with schizophrenia is that they are just crazy people who are violent. I think people think that way because what they see in movies about them and they don't really know the truth about them. They betray these people by putting them in scary movies and making them seem violent. That is the reason people think they are that way. I think society should look into more about schizophrenia and not just go by what they hear about them. They shouldn't just say they are crazy people until the know the honest truth about them. I think that we should make more films explaining what is schizophrenia and more information so we can all learn about it. We should take in consideration that these are still people even though they have a illness and they shouldn't be mistreated.
ReplyDeleteSchizophrenia is a long-term mental disorder that generally appears in late adolescence and early adulthood. The symptoms of schizophrenia can cause people to hear voices, have hallucinations or delusions, loss of personality, confusion, odd behavior, and social withdrawal. A person who develops schizophrenia starts to have trouble distinguishing between the real world and their imagination. Before enrolling in this course I didn’t know much about the topic. The only thing that I knew was that it was a mental disorder that changed the person’s personality and that was about it. During the time of the course, I have learned all of the information that I listed above from in class notes, videos, research sites, and articles. In the mainstream media, schizophrenia is a very violent mental disorder that threatens the lives of anyone living near a schizophrenic. They only show the worst cases of this mental disease because they don’t find it entertaining otherwise. The media doesn't show all the other cases of schizophrenics who aren't that bothered by this disease and live their normal lives. Since the media only shows the bad cases of schizophrenia, society stereotypes schizophrenics as dangerous killers who can’t live a normal life. This may be true for a very small amount of cases but this does no good to the other people who have schizophrenia and are very normal people that could be your friends or neighbors. For Americans to fully understand what schizophrenia really is, they need to block out the opinion that the media has created. Do your own research on the topic and create your own opinion, don’t just think what others say is true because it may not be.
ReplyDeleteBefore enrolling in Psychology, I had been exposed to the mental disorder schizophrenia, but had a somewhat limited knowledge of what it truly meant to be schizophrenic. I have an uncle who is a paranoid schizophrenic, but I never really knew what that meant. He has always just been Uncle Jim to me. I knew that there was something different about him, but I never thought there was anything wrong with him. When I got older and started to watch more mature television shows and movies, I was exposed to the idea that schizophrenia was a dangerous disease that left those with it a danger to society. I had a hard time excepting these stereotypes because my uncle did not fit any of them. He is to take care of himself. He isn’t a danger to himself or others. He doesn’t sit in a room and talk to people that aren’t there. He lived for years as a “normal” member of society before anyone even considered that the slightly strange things he would do could be signs of schizophrenia. He is a schizophrenic, though his case is very mild. The media only portrays the extreme cases that catch the public’s attention. This leads Americans to assuming that all schizophrenics suffer the exact same symptoms and should always be handled with care because they could have a break down at any time. There is nothing that can be done for news stations in regards to this issue. They will always promote the stories that make headlines, which by nature tend to be the more extreme cases. A possible way to address this issue would be to look at how schizophrenics are portrayed in fictional programs. Crime shows and even comedies often only depict severe cases of schizophrenia and ignore the less extreme cases. If these shows and movies were to introduce the idea of a functional, non-dangerous schizophrenic as often or if not more often than a disorganized and crazy “loose cannon”, then such stereotypes and misconceptions wouldn’t be so common and the average American wouldn't be so naïve about this tragic disorder.
ReplyDeleteI know that schizophrenia is a mental illness where the person has trouble distinguishing between reality and what is in their head. They often have hallucinations and most are paranoid. Often they hear voices that are normally negative towards them and others. I learned all these facts mostly from class but some I knew before because of my mom. When in nursing school one of her clinical rotations took place in the psychiatric ward and a couple of the patients were schizophrenic. Even though it did come in conversation from time to time in general I did not know a lot about schizophrenics before this class. I feel like the media generally portrays mental illnesses in the worst of ways by focusing on the cases where extreme violence occurs. The media neglects of what the illness is and how it affects the person. Due to the media not showing all sides of schizophrenia I believe that a lot of the general public are greatly lacking in knowledge of this disorder. I think that they generally believe that all schizophrenics are going to pull out a gun and shoot someone. I also feel like, thanks to the media, the average American does not believe that the people suffering from schizophrenia are worth anything. Sometimes the media portrays them as inhuman when that is not the case but most Americans do not know that. I think that without media on the schizophrenic’s side we will not be able to completely clear up these misconceptions. I think that those who are knowledgeable in the subject of schizophrenia need to step up and teach those who do not have any information.
ReplyDeleteSchizophrenia is a mental illness in the mind and brain of a human and causes them to developed voices in their head that begin to take over their life and cause them to act in inhuman ways. Schizophrenia is a devastating disorder for most people who are afflicted and can take a huge toll on families and friends. This knowledge was learned through read articles on the mental illness and classroom discuss. Before enrolling in the psychology course I had very little understanding of the illness and only new that patients of this acted in very strange ways. From experience, mental illness and schizophrenia has an extremely negative reputation in the mainstream media. As part of the business, the media tends to share information that would engage people, such as the negative reputation of the mentally ill. People affected by various diseases are likely to be portrayed as violent and dangerous when there are case which this isn't the case. Media reports are always quick to jump on the negative happenings in cases of the mentally ill. People often have misconceptions of what the illness actually is and can use improper terms to describe the illness such as crazy which also leads to the negative reputation. Yet again the misconceptions and stereotypes placed upon patients of this mental disorder is the idea that they are all violent and dangerous when in fact not all of them are. Techniques we could start to use to try and deconstruct the myths surrounding the disorder would be to educate not only young adults but people of all ages on the disorder and its symptoms. Informing people of what its really like to have such a condition in life could possibly create more people to have an appreciation of their health and a passion to help the mentally ill.
ReplyDeleteI know that schizophrenia is a mental disease that makes a person hear voices, have delusions, and are confused if something is real or not. I also know that schizophrenia can change a person’s attitude and speech. These changes cause these people to not have a normal life. I learned these facts by reading articles and listening to my psychology teacher. Before I enrolled in this course I believed what the rest of the media believes. I believed that these people were crazy and harmful. I also thought there was only an extremely minor part of the United States’ population that had this disease. Most Americans are just like me. They have no idea what schizophrenia is. Most Americans stay away from these people as if they would catch the disease if they got to close. They see a person that is struggling and they ignore the issue. They also believe that these people will harm them in some way. Most Americans listen to the news. The news always says negative articles such as the schizophrenic who killed a person. Americans should be more educated towards schizophrenia and diseases like schizophrenia. Media should start talking about the more positive side of schizophrenia. No, schizophrenia isn’t a positive disease, but they should understand that these people can be treated and most aren’t dangerous. Media should start talking about the rareness of a schizophrenic acting out when they tell their stories. Also more high schools should have the option of a psychology class so more people are educated about the disease. Also these students can spread the word of how harmless schizophrenics are and possibly more people will reach out and help someone who needs it.
ReplyDeleteBefore taking psychology, I had no previous knowledge about schizophrenia. I've only heard the word thrown around in conversation but I never had taken the time to wonder what it was. Now that I'm in the class I've learned that schizophrenia is a mental disorder where the person has inappropriate emotions and reactions to things,a lost sense of reality, hallucinations, they can hear voices that don't exist, and mental fragmentation. In the mainstream media schizophrenia seems to be extremely exaggerated. It's very rare for someone that is schizophrenic to be dangerous for others to be around. Most schizophrenics are dangerous to themselves because some may not have a sense of reality at all and could put themselves into potentially harmful situations if they're alone. Schizophrenia however, isn't always so extreme that people can't live a normal life. The medicines that they have now to "treat" schizophrenia can completely eliminate all symptoms for some people. The media also portrays schizophrenics as having "split personalities" but this isn't the case. Schizophrenia actually stands for the breaking apart of mental functions, not a split personality.The media sometimes portrays someone becoming schizophrenic after some sort of tragic accident or trauma. This idea is also false because schizophrenia is a genetic disorder. If you have people in your family with schizophrenia then your chances are higher of inheriting it. In order to fix these misconceptions I think that the media should base their movies on actual fact instead of making their own reasons and causes for things. Even when a story comes up on the news about someone schizophrenic it should be explained that if this person happened to be violent, that it's very rare for other schizophrenics to be also. Psychology courses should be offered in more schools so people can become more educated on not just schizophrenia but other mental disorders too.
ReplyDeleteI learned about schizophrenia in my psychology class. Before learning about schizophrenia all I knew was that it was a mental disorder I thought from the movies that I've seen that schizophrenia made people into aggressive and dangerous people. I thought that it was scary that anyone could develop this mental disease because the way it tears families apart. The media portrays people with schizophrenia as dangerous maniacs that kill people when that is only a small percent of the people that develop schizophrenia. It disturbs me that the media is pushing schizophrenic people away from their families by making them look possessed by demons or the devil when they are just disconnected with reality.
ReplyDeletePeople that have mental disorders like schizophrenia should be recieving help from a mental facility or a loving and caring family member that knows how to take care of someone with their condition. Because otherwise they will be pushed further and further away from reality. I know that a person has no control of their chances to of going to develop schizophrenia or not. It just happens one day they don't have voices in their head the next day their hearing voices and they don't know that something is wrong with them. People with schizophrenia become paranoid that someone is out to get them this furthers them from people even more. I think as a society we should show both sides of the coin good and the bad because if you only get one side of the story then how are they people that are in dire need of our help going to get any better.
I knew that schizophrenia is a disorder where a person experiences voices in there heads and loses attention easily. I have learned this psychology this year. Before enrolling in this course, I honestly thought schizophrenics were dangerous people who are bound to commit a crime or harm someone because of the voices in their heads. I think schizophrenia is portrayed as a disease that only a few people have that makes a person no longer acceptable to socialize in regular life. I believe that the average human believes that schizophrenics are crazy and they are afraid that they may harm them. These misconceptions most often come from the media. In movies, schizophrenics are often portrayed as murders. It makes it seem as if the voices in their heads are some kind of silly game and an excuse of why they committed the crime. It seems to me the media only shows schizophrenics when their disease is not being controlled. As a society, we should try to raise the awareness of the true affects of schizophrenia. There are millions of people living with this awful disease and most of us don’t even know what it does. We should be more supportive to people with this disease because quite honestly anyone could develop it. Schizophrenia does not only affect the person with the disease, but also their families. I believe that it would be like a family member dying, but really they are only dead on the inside. To me this would be worse than if they were to die, at least then you would remember them as the person you once knew, rather than the person whose life has been affected by this awful disorder.
ReplyDeleteBefore taking psychology, I had the stereotypical thoughts about it. If I had been asked what it was, I would have simply said “the people who have schizophrenia are crazy and kind of scary.” I would have answered this way because of what the media and society had “taught” me about the disease. The media and society portrays the disease in harsh a way, they portray the people as violent and dangerous, when in fact, in most cases they aren’t dangerous at all. But since I have been taking psychology, I have learned so much new information about the mental illness. Psychology has taught me characteristics of the disease like drastic changes in emotions, delusions, hallucinations and paranoia. I have learned so much new information about schizophrenia, I have learned that how the media and society portrays mental illness is just wrong. Mental illness is portrayed wrong in the media, they make it seem like they are so crazy and dangerous. But in reality, schizophrenics and many other mentally ill people are able to keep their diseases under control with medicine. The media needs to start showing that, they aren’t just crazy and dangerous, there is so much more to it. Schizophrenics and the mentally ill are able to keep their diseases under control with medicine and help form others, and the media needs to show that. They need to start showing the truth about mental illnesses and showing the real facts. They need to help the mentally ill by doing that, and showing them that they can have help. We all need to start understanding the disease and learning the facts instead of believing everything the media and society has to say about it. We need to help the people who need it and spread the right words about the mentally ill, not the wrong ones.
ReplyDeleteSchizophrenia is a mental disorder that tends to appear in early adulthood. This illness is a brain disease in which may include delusions, loss of personality, confusion, and loss of speech. I learned this information in psychology class, we have had many discussions concerning schizophrenia and numerous assignments on it. Before taking psych this year I had the wrong definition of schizophrenia. I thought schizophrenia was more like multiple personality syndrome, as if someone were to change from one person to another in a short amount of time. I quickly came to the conclusion that I was very far off of the real definition of schizophrenia. In my opinion mainstream media is not informative of the realistic situations of mental illnesses. Media often gives people the wrong idea of what people with mental illnesses do on a daily basis. Media seems to go straight to the worst case scenarios. The people who create these TV shows and movies know that no one wants to watch something as boring as someone trying to live with such a terrible disease, instead they enjoy showing mentally ill people jumping off bridges and committing suicide. Many people have the wrong idea about schizophrenia. Some people think that it’s when you are simply crazy while others think it is when you continuously have seizures. People clearly have never been exposed to someone who is schizophrenic or have even read the definition of schizophrenia. I think that media plays a huge role in this. As a society we should not pay attention to what obnoxious things we see on TV. We should give these people who struggle with this disease the benefit of the doubt and realize that there is a lot more to these diseases than what is shown in the media.
ReplyDeleteSchizophrenia is a mental condition that affects 1 out of every 100 people. It causes people to have hallucinations, hear voices, and think people are watching them. They are usually afraid of other human beings. I learned all of that in this class. Before this class I didn’t know much about Schizophrenia. All i knew was that people who had this condition heard voices. It isn’t accurately portrayed in the mainstream media. All Hollywood wants is to get good ratings on a movie so they make the movie more interesting by making Schizophrenia seem worse or more dangerous than it actually is. A lot of people believe that every person who has schizophrenia is a dangerous killer, crazy, or dirty. The truth is that they aren’t all harmful, dirty, or crazy. As people we should block out all of those misconceptions out. We should do research on our own to figure out the exact truth. We should deconstruct theses myths and make our society more aware of what is the truth and what is a lie or made up. Too many people believe everything they see on TV or in a movie. If people become more aware that everything isn’t the truth then as a society we will be putting a stop to these myths.
ReplyDeleteWhat I know about schizophrenia is that it is a brain disease that causes people to hallucinate and be paranoid of everyone, and everything around them. I know this because I talked to a few schizophrenics on an online therapy website. They all relatively had the same symptoms and it was very difficult to get them to be calm. Before enrolling in this course, I knew a pretty good amount about schizophrenia. I think schizophrenia is portrayed as a serious mental disorder where those who are diagnosed with it are scary, dirty, crazy freaks. Average Americans may believe that schizophrenics are always hallucinating, are hunched in corners rocking back and forth, and talk to themselves. The media helped influence these somewhat incorrect descriptions of schizophrenia through Hollywood. Hollywood makes movies that sell. Unfortunately, documentaries which contain facts and the truth do not sell. So, Hollywood movies portray schizophrenics in a way that is entertaining to the audiences. We may need to give public service announcements in order to fix the twisted view, just as we do for other diseases or disorders such as diabetes.
ReplyDeleteAll I know of Schizophrenia is that it is a neurologic disorder that makes the person with the condition interpret reality abnormally. They have hallucinations and a very disordered way of thinking and behaving. I have learned it from curiosity and from videos and notes from Psychology. At first I thought it was a multiple personality disorder. The person with the disorder was crazy and would have multiple words they could be in. I feel as if mental disorders, such as schizophrenia, isn't portrayed in an informal way. Actors and actresses show that these people are crazy and they have no qualities of a normal person. I feel society and the media don’t fully understand what people are actually like with mental disorders. Many people haven’t met someone with a mental disorder like schizophrenia. Odds are, they wouldn’t know they had a condition. The media would make movies with actors and actresses that acted as people with mental disorders and would not portray them correctly. They exaggerate mental illness and depict negativity. Movies, in particular, have been faulted for misrepresenting mental illness and ongoing stereotypes. The characters the have schizophrenia in movies are shown to be talking to themselves or are poor and living on the street and have poor hygiene. These types of discrepancies create a stigma for mental illnesses as a whole. I feel as though many people either don’t know what schizophrenia is or they think the same as I do and believe its a multiple personality disorder. If we can make more people aware of what schizophrenia is through events, videos, and articles then society can be correctly informed.
ReplyDeleteSchizophrenia is a mental disorder that causes people to see objects or people that are not there. They also may think that someone is watching them or out to get them when there is nothing out there. I learned most of this from shows and then asking questions about it. My basic understanding of this disorder what that it affects your brain and how you live your life. Often people with this disorder will have a tough time living a normal life. I think that in movies we only see the the worst case scenarios that have grown into a mainstream idea. The idea that every schizophrenic is going to become a killer or do something to harm others is something that is just not true,but is much more exciting to watch and gets bigger ratings. I am not really sure how you could go about changing the myths that are already out there. I feel that maybe adding facts along with myths will help. It could be interesting to see if by adding posters at a movies opening that they have facts about schizophrenia or other disorders so people can have truth as well as the myths. Hopefully by adding these facts around people can go in and come out of the movie with facts that really say that this is not a every time situation for people with schizophrenia. Over all education about schizophrenia is going to the biggest factor in whether or not people know the true facts about this disorder. Only when people have the facts can they really know what is going on and what they need to do.
ReplyDeleteSchizophrenia is a neurological disorder where the brain has issues making distinctions between imagination and reality. I learned about schizophrenia on a website called Tumblr, I came across an audio recording of what it might sound like to be inside of a schizophrenic’s mind. After listening to the audio, I did more research on the topic and learned that these people suffer from all types of hallucinations and become very confused. I was not able to listen to the entire recording because it was so eerie. It consisted of overlapping whispery voices, it was very hard to figure out what they were actually saying. There were various noises happening as well, like dripping of the faucet and beeps. The media portrays schizophrenia as a disorder that dirty people get. After watching a movie where schizophrenia is present, you would think only people who don’t have any dreams or ambitions get the disorder. The average American probably thinks that schizophrenia is caused by being a scum, and it ruins your entire life. The other night, I watched a movie called The Haunting in Connecticut 2. The movie never said what the woman was suffering from, but I thought it was schizophrenia. The movie starts off on a scene where she is sitting in her room and she looks over and sees a ghost, she immediately thinks its because her pills wore off, so she takes another one. From what I understand about schizophrenia, the victims are not able to distinguish when they are and are not hallucinating. I don’t think that Hollywood will ever want to eliminate stereotypes because it will risk a decrease in sales. It will be very difficult to eliminate stereotypes because people aren’t willing to get educated.
ReplyDeleteSchizophrenia is a disease in the mind. It makes the host hallucinate, hear things, have speaking problems, have behavior issues, and they loss of motivation. All this I learned in class and from the media and hollywood. Before taking this class I believed Schizophrenia was a disease that made you go crazy, see things and cause you to be angry. I thought of it being a very violent disease of the brain. Through the media and through hollywood, Schizophrenia is betrayed as being a horrible disease that cannot be controlled. Almost all new reports of Schizophrenia are about the person harming them in some way or even killing them. They never show them in the news if they are normal with Schizophrenia because it is not exciting enough, so people think that everyone with Schizophrenia are dangerous. Most movies that portray Schizophrenia also them being crazy and dangerous. The misconception among people today is that people diagnosed with Schizophrenia are not normal and can be dangerous. Most people do not know what Schizophrenia is and what it does, but when these people see what they do in the news or in movies they believe that all people with Schizophrenia are like this. They do not understand that most people diagnosed with Schizophrenia live a normal life with the help of medication and support. We can change the way people think about Schizophrenia by showing how most people live when they are diagnosed with Schizophrenia, and not just showing the bad parts and dangerous parts.
ReplyDeleteI know that schizophrenia was a brain disorder that affected a person’s sense of reality and think something that is imaginary is real. I learned from my psychology class and from tv shows that portrayed schizophrenia. Schizophrenia is portrayed as people who are extremely crazy and extremely dangerous. Most people who portray schizophrenia in the media are pictured as people who are extremely crazy and most times the person acting like a schizophrenic kills someone or nearly kills themselves. The major stereotype of schizophrenics is people believing that anyone with schizophrenia should be feared and no one should ever go near a schizophrenic because the schizophrenic could kill them. All movies and tv shows about people with schizophrenia usually have the actor/actress act extremely crazy and act like a murderer. One thing society should do to truly make people realize what a real person with schizophrenia is like is make movies or tv shows that actually has someone play a schizophrenic with the exact disabilities someone with schizophrenia has and present people on the news or talk shows that have schizophrenia so they can tell society what schizophrenia really is.
ReplyDeleteAlmost everything that I know about schizophrenia I have learned in this course. Prior to the chapter on the brain, I only knew vaguely about schizophrenia, and that “vague” knowledge came from the media. Many years ago I saw an episode of the TV show “Criminal Minds” where there was a man who killed people as a result of schizophrenia and a heroin addiction. He had a “split personality,” where he transformed, in a way, into his father. The only way he was able to calm himself down was by injecting himself with heroin to satisfy his addiction. This episode contributed to the idea portrayed by the media that all schizophrenics display psychopathic behaviors. Movies, especially those included in the horror genre, show false characteristics of a typical schizophrenic. Although the stereotype is untrue in many cases, some schizophrenics really do have psychopathic behaviors, especially those who have paranoid schizophrenia. In reality, many schizophrenics lead a normal life with the help of support and medications, but the media does not typically show this because it would interfere with the stereotypical definition of a schizophrenic. Many Americans who have seen TV shows or movies depicting schizophrenia believe that the stereotypes are true, and this mental illness cannot be controlled. I believe that in order to demolish these beliefs, there should be some sort of movie that shows detail of a schizophrenia’s average day, and how normal the lives of some schizophrenics can be. If people could realize this, many people diagnosed with schizophrenia wouldn’t feel targeted by stereotypical beliefs.
ReplyDeleteSchizophrenia is a neurological disorder where a person suffers from delusions or hallucinations. Before enrolling in this class I didn’t know a lot about schizophrenia. I thought it was a completely different disorder than what it actually is. Before this class I believed that schizophrenia was a form of multiple personality disorder. In the media, schizophrenia is portrayed as something completely different from the truth. The media portrays schizophrenics as people who can’t function in society because they live in their own little worlds and “the voices in there head” tell them to do something. They are portrayed as crazy people who should be feared by everybody. Due to the way the media portrays schizophrenia, I believe that Americans think schizophrenia is exactly what the media shows it as. Americans will believe that all schizophrenics are violent, crazy, suicidal, and can’t function in society. People see them as someone to be feared and attempt to avoid them at all costs. This is all the media’s fault in a way. The media is never portraying a schizophrenic how they should really be portrayed; a normal person who can function in society. With the support of close family and friends a schizophrenic can live a normal life. As a society we should stop creating lies about how all schizophrenics act. Even though there are some who act like the media portrays them, not all schizophrenics are like those in the media. As a society we need to get the word out that schizophrenics shouldn't be feared or avoided. They are normal people trying to live a normal life.
ReplyDeleteI didn't know very much about schizophrenia before coming to this course. I knew a little from games and T.V. shows. I really only knew it as a mental disease that caused you to have delusions and unless it was properly treated, you could have problems. But, if the person was properly treated then they could live normal lives. A problem that I know of with the medication “fixing” them, is they like with any medication they think they are better and that they don’t need to take it anymore. This causes them to stop taking it and then their symptoms and problems come back. That is generally all I knew about schizophrenia before enrolling in this course. Now, the mainstream media portrays it not to help educate people in the world. They portray it to get money. So, their portrayals are very outrageous and more engrossing for people to watch; which makes them want to watch it. The outcome of this is that people have many misconceptions about the disease. They have the idea that they are murderers and psychopaths. They think that they cannot live a normal life, and the ones that can are special. That most do not live normal lives, and struggle with everyday things. As a society we should try and educate more people. That is the base of the problem. If more people knew about schizophrenia, then we wouldn't be supplied by false knowledge. Then, the movies would just be movies, and not the proof.
ReplyDeleteSchizophrenia along with most other mental illnesses are widely portrayed in the mainstream media as people that are dangerous, or often murderers. They are portrayed that people suffering from them are different and in turn should be feared. Hollywood and other movie companies make plenty of movies about people that suffer from mental illnesses, but they never fully portray the characters as an average person with that mental illness would act accurately.The media has put into place many misconceptions about schizophrenia over the years. In order to diminish the misconceptions the public the media needs to start accurately portraying what it is like to live with a mental illness.While an informative movie about mental illnesses might not have a high monetary value they will change the way society and people view people that suffer from mental illnesses, such as schizophrenia. People base their knowledge on a subject on whatever they’ve learned through the media and don’t take the time to research topics. I knew that schizophrenia was a mental illness that affects somebody’s ability to distinguish between reality and their hallucinations. I learned what I knew about schizophrenia from the media before I enrolled in this class. While the media doesn’t always accurately portray the average schizophrenic, but instead the few that are dangerous, it still taught me that the illness made doing everyday things seem difficult if not impossible. However, I just as any person had some misconceptions due to what I had heard and seen in the media.
ReplyDeleteI learned about schizophrenia through Mr. Bruce’s class. I did not know much before the class. I knew of the positive symptoms, like hallucinations and hearing voices. I wasn’t aware of the negative symptoms like lack of motivation that many people who are affected suffer from. I think that the media does not portray them accurately because movies would not be as entertaining if the schizophrenics weren’t scary killers. They wouldn’t sell as many tickets to movies if they had a schizophrenic that was taking medication and functioning well in society. Because of this, not many people know the real facts about them. This is why many people think that all schizos want to harm themselves or other people. If people knew the facts about this disorder they wouldn’t be so scared of them. Even though they are mentally ill with the proper medication it can be controlled. The way the media portrays them makes people scared of them which isn’t right because most of them don’t want to hurt others. They think everyone is out to get them so they are afraid of most people. Most of the people end up homeless because they would like to become so detached from society. Some of the people think that everyone is out to get them, and that the governments plots against them. If more people were aware of the real symptoms of schizophrenia maybe schizos wouldn’t be as misunderstood.
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ReplyDeleteMost of what I learned about schizophrenia I have learned from this class. I did not know much about it before, just what I had seen on TV or heard from stereotypes.Before all I thought was that schizophrenic people were just very paranoid about everything. I have learned that they have delusions, and hallucinations. Many of them have delusions about the government, and are paranoid. I had only seen schizophrenia on TV shows. The one I remember most was an episode Law and Order: Special Victims Unit. There was a victim in the show who was schizophrenic and who struggled to stay on meds because she believed that there were people who were out to get her and planting bugs in the library to look at her. I now can make the connection that she was delusional. Also in the show, she lived in a small apartment with all the windows covered and she rarely left her house. I did not know until this course that this is a common thing among people living with schizophrenia. I think the media likes to portray people with schizophrenia as psychotic, and more likely to murder. I can see how this could be believable to some people, because they are delusional and if I thought someone was out to get me, I'd want to get rid of them too probably. But, what most people don't understand is that people living with schizophrenia think everyone is out to get them, so they want to stay away from people. Walking along the streets, it would be very unlikely to run across someone with the disorder because they want to completely distance themselves from everyone else. I think the only way to make people with this disease more understood and erase stereotypes is by education on the subject.
ReplyDeleteWhat little I know about schizophrenia is that it is a mental disorder or illness that may cause visual or auditory hallucinations or dramatic behavioral changes. Although that isn’t much, it is enough to know and understand that the mainstream media portrays an exaggerated idea of what schizophrenia is. An insane killer with voices in their head is what it usually is portrayed as in order to quickly cash in on some movie-goers. That idea sells, it thrills, and it scares, but it doesn’t inform. What Hollywood doesn't want you to know is that most of their movies, weather based on a true story or not, are made up or overemphasized. Most people think Hollywood’s schizophrenia is the only form of the disorder or have not heard of it at all. While a murderer with schizophrenia is not impossible, there are multiple forms and the average American should be informed of what the disorder is. Although highly improbable, a world without negative stereotypes or at least a world with less ignorance would be not only more accepting, but also more peaceful. This could achieved in multiple ways, but most would require time and open minds. The quickest alternative on the other hand would be for a new age of realistic yet intriguing movies by big names in the industry. If this was tried today, most likely it would result in a loss of revenue and a return to the original stereotypes. So, will the society of the future be more understanding and open minded, or will mainstream media continue to heavily influence society? Only time will tell.
ReplyDeleteTo be completely honest, the little I know about schizophrenia I have learned from psychology class. After watching this video, the little discussions we have had in class, and the homework assignment I’ve learned that it is a mental illness that some refer to as “being crazy.” People who suffer from schizophrenia can’t tell what is reality and what isn’t. Schizophrenia victims generally struggle with hallucinations and delusions. They develop strange behavior such as being convinced that there are voices and people “out to get them” went there really isn’t. Before enrolling in psych, I’m almost certain I had never heard of schizophrenia. I still feel like I have a cloudy understanding of the illness but am positive I’ll learn more soon. I have never seen a movie or any form of media about the sickness, however I think it is a fair assumption that like all things in media it would be misportrayed. As we talked about earlier in class, the goal of Hollywood is to make money. A movie about a serial killer with schizophrenia would selling much better than a basic true story documentary. I believe that our little research such as watching the video proved that America knows very little about schizophrenia. Due to the lack of knowledge, we are more vulnerable to make opinions and assumptions about the illness from the media we see. Since the media isn’t always truthful or completely reliable, most Americans probably have false ideas about schizophrenia. As a society, we should work together to properly educate people about schizophrenia and other similar mental illness to prevent media persuasions. If possible, the exaggerated media should be stopped or better controlled to prevent misinterpretations. If people started spreading awareness about illness such as schizophrenia, our nation’s people would have a better understanding out this serious condition so many suffer from.
ReplyDeleteSchizophrenia is a mental disorder that makes it difficult for its victims to distinguish what’s real and what isn’t. When people have this disorder, they often hear voices, experience hallucinations, and withdraw from reality and relationships into this fantasy and delusional world they create in their minds. I learned all of this in my psychology class. Prior to this class, my knowledge on the subject was limited. All I knew about schizophrenia was what I heard through the media, and let’s face it: the media often portrays people with this disorder in a negative fashion. The word “schizophrenia” has a negative connotation in the ears of most Americans. This is largely due to the effect of the media. For some odd reason, we are drawn shows that involve crime. To name a few: Law and Order, NCIS, Criminal Minds, The Mentalist.. need I go on? I think you get my point. Mental illness in general often gets associated with criminal activity because of shows like these. As a whole, we have grown to fear people with mental disorders like schizophrenia because of the false and exaggerated behaviors we witness in these shows as well as movies. Perhaps the only way to change these false perceptions is to change the way they are portrayed in our media. Instead of making them the killers, the murderers, and the rapists, why don’t we make them the human beings they are and show the real symptoms in which they suffer from.
ReplyDeleteComing into this class I really did not know a lot about schizophrenia. I had a lot of misunderstandings. I thought schizophrenia was a mental disorder that made people go crazy. I thought the victims of schizophrenia were “bad” people and lived a rough life style. After learning what I have, I now understand that people living with schizophrenia live a pretty normal life like the rest of us. The only really big difference between them is the hallucinations or delusions a schizophrenic has. I can not really think of a time that I have seen a movie or show about schizophrenia. Everything I did hear about it was through peers and family. Even then no one really explained to me what it meant. I kind of guessed and went off of some things I had heard. I believe many misconceptions exist in the American mind. The media has made it seem like being a schizophrenic was a terrible thing which made that person a terrible person. Hollywood cares more about getting lots of views and five stars on their movies. They rather have a great movie and make a nice profit than inform society about the real facts. I think the media and society need to come up with a way of making a great production while informing others about this mental disorder. If that was not possible, I think we as a society should inform others with the correct information. The next time you hear peers, family, and others talking about schizophrenia and they have incorrect info take a minute to stop and inform them with the correct information. Every little step can help get society to better understand this disorder.
ReplyDeleteI didn’t know much about Schizophrenia before this course, I knew that it was a neurological disorder. I had heard that it was a disorder that made people do violent things or act out in a way that could really hurt themselves or others. Since we started learning about it I have learned that it is when people have hallucinations, starts hearing voices in their head, starts acting differently, and sometimes can stop being motivated or interested in something they once were. Media portrays mental illnesses as things that are very scary or uncortlable. It makes is seem like every person with a mental illness is crazy and acts out and sometimes hurts themselves or others. I think that many misconceptions that exist in many average American mind is like what the media portrays in the movies or television shows, they think that people with mental illnesses are all violent. Not all people that have a mental illness are violent. I don’t think that everyone with a mental illness are the same at all. Some people can control it and are able to take medication or do something to help them not be the violent people that media portrays them to be. Some people unfortunately aren’t able to control it and act out but they aren’t necessarily violent. I think in order for people to understand mental illnesses we need to stop letting the media influence us so much. Yes, movies or tv shows are more interesting when they over exaggerate things but we should realize that they do that to make money off of it. People just need to realize while watching these things that it isn’t always really how people act when they have a mental illness.
ReplyDeleteMy knowledge of schizophrenia before this class was very limited. I knew that schizophrenics often experienced breaks in reality that made it impossible for them to distinguish between reality and their imagination. I didn’t know that there were different types and degrees of severity to this disease. In the media, schizophrenia and mental illness are frequently negatively exploited to increase theatrical value. This, of course, isn’t fair to people who are suffering through a mental illness that would never hurt anyone. It must be terrifying enough to go through life knowing that you can’t even trust your own mind, let alone being afraid of how people will judge you. People with schizophrenia are usually assumed to be violent, unpredictable, antisocial, and irresponsible. Being that I don’t personally know anyone with schizophrenia, my experience with the disease is as deep as the media has portrayed it. Because it’s what sells, we only hear about the schizophrenics who have gone on a violent rampage in the news. We never hear about the everyday guy who is well-controlled on his medication and leading a normal life with the support of his family and friends. If more people knew how common and controlled this disease is, I think it would help remove some of the stigma attached. As with all mental illness, we need to become a more supportive society that is able to foster a more accepting environment for the people who are struggling with schizophrenia. The more comfortable patients are with confronting their problem, the easier it will be for them to seek help.
ReplyDeleteSchizophrenia is a mental disorder that causes the people to hear voices, experience delusions and can make them have no motivation. Before this course I've actually had a little education on schizophrenia because my great aunt suffers from it. She was diagnosed when she was in college and it seemed to have completely changed her life, since she is now in a group home for people with mental disorders. When we would visit her I would always be curious about why she was acting the way she did but since i was very young I wouldn't get a full explanation but as i grew up i began more curious about what was going on with my aunt so i started to do some research. I learned that schizophrenia is usually diagnosed in early adulthood and that some people can live their everyday lives with it but others can not. I talk to my grandfather about his sister sometimes and he just remembers how she had everything going for her but everything ended up changing because of her developed schizophrenia, still today I don't have a full understanding on what happened to my aunt. But after watching these videos, in general schizophrenia is portrayed in the media as a mental disorder that caused the people with it to become completely crazy, killing people and other crazy things. But in real life people live everyday with schizophrenia but its hard for the media to make money off a movie where all you see is a person just living a normal life. With the media portraying this mental disorder like this, to prevent misconceptions about this disorder all we can do is educate people about schizophrenia and explain to them that they aren't dangerous like the media may portray them. By asking questions about my aunt and doing research about her disorder i learned a lot and realized i shouldn't be scared of her but i should have an understanding on what is going on in her mind.
ReplyDeleteSchizophrenia to me is a condition in which a normal person has abnormal mind activity and hallucinations that deceive all reality. One big thing of the media that helped my coming to understand schizophrenia was the movie Shutter Island. In this, everyone is portrayed as absolutely insane and dangerous and this gives schizophrenics a very bad connotation. At first not knowing the truth and reality, I believed that schizophrenics were this way and were harmful and unaware of how much potential danger they could cause. One positive aspect of the movie you could say was the showing of just what schizos went through in their mind and how horrifying it was. As I watched this video, I can see just how poorly schizophrenia is portrayed in all media. As I later have researched, I have found loads upon loads of movies that are about schizophrenics and can tell just by their covers that they negatively represent the disorder. The problem with the media is that they are looking for the money, the rave reviews. They are not necessarily the most accurate sources to go to for things like this. As these misconceptions become widely spread and popular, it is hard to determine what is fact from what is myth. And as, of course, Hollywood and the news never take a break, the problem only gets perpetuated. Perhaps instead of showing only the crazed side of these sufferers in the news, the media could instead talk about more realistic scenarios. Maybe make a happy comedy about it? (Sadly, we all know in reality the chances of this are slim to none.)
ReplyDeleteI don’t really know much about schizophrenia except for the little I’ve picked up from class, my textbook, youtube, and the attached video. I know that there are different types. Like some schizophrenics hear voices or see hallucinations that make them think that everyone loves them, and others hear voices and see hallucinations that make them think that people are out to get them. When they hear these voices or see these hallucinations, they can’t separate what’s fake from what’s reality. They can’t even tell the difference between their dreams. Prior to this class, I thought that if someone suffered from schizophrenia, it meant that they were dangerous. I didn’t realized that it was really something that they actually suffered from and thought it was more of what the people around them suffer from. In the mainstream, I feel it’s portrayed the same way; people who are schizophrenic are portrayed as dangerous, crazy people. I can’t speak for everyone, but I feel as though when people hear “schizophrenic” they think of a recluse who sits curled up in a corner with their clothes and hair all dishevelled. The media helps create that very image by portraying them this very way in crime shows or movies. Unfortunately, once that image is out there, it’s very hard to replace it with a new one. However, we could attempt to get rid of the stereotypes by portraying them correctly in the media or making a movie or show completely about them. It would actually be pretty interesting if someone crafted a series with someone suffering from schizophrenia as the main character.
ReplyDeleteBefore enrolling in this class, my knowledge on schizophrenia was nonexistent other than the mislead information from movies portraying the mental illness. Mainstream media has been a huge misconception to many unknown disorders and illnesses. They have portrayed the men and women with these issues to be cold blood killers when in reality, pretty near all of them are not. Before the schizophrenia lesson, that exact definition was what I thought to be true. However, looking into the mental illness a little deeper, I have learned that the true definition is the exact opposite of what people suggest. In the minds of the victims, there is nothing wrong with themselves, but really they “see things” that aren’t there and convince themselves that peopleb are out to get them. Individuals with schizophrenia usually hide away from people because of those exact reasons. In the real world, they are not going around looking for opportunities to kill people. This is one of the many stereotypes that continue to be an issue today.
ReplyDeleteToday’s media is very competitive in the roles of who gets the most views or most movie. Therefore, the movies that they have come out with lack a sense of reality but contain exaggerated scenes that attract the viewers even though the movie plot is completely unrealistic. After watching a few documentaries about disorders like schizophrenia, I found that these kind of “movies” are much more scary and interesting than movies like Silence Of The Lambs. Instead of making movies like so, the media should invest in documentaries that teach the public about this mental illness. Not only will it teach and help people learn, but I will also bet that many people would like to see a documentary about the real thing.
When I came in to the class I only knew a few things about schizophrenia diagnosed people. I knew that they had a hallucinations and that they didn’t know what was the difference between the thoughts in their head and the real world. I came into this class also thinking that schizophrenics were crazy and couldn’t control their reactions. I believe that I came up with assumption from the mainstreamed media. The movies depicts diagnosed people as crazy and unstable. I feel most people who don’t know someone diagnosed with schizophrenia also belief that they are crazy and unstable. I think people are scared of these people because of what they see in the movies and they don’t realize the truth. I feel we as a society should better show the truth of schizophrenic patients. We could use the popularity of movies and television shows to show these truths that diagnosed people can live a normal and healthy life. They can function just like a normal person. The hallucinations can be helped with medications and they can be just as rational and sane as any undiagnosed patient. My knowledge has changed one schizophrenic people because I know that people can be just as normal as me while they are diagnosed. I think that more people should realize that schizophrenics are normal and aren’t insane or crazed like in movies and television shows. They need to realize that people creating the movies and television shows make it more dramatic to grab the viewers attention.
ReplyDeleteHonestly I don’t know much about schizophrenia. I know that if a person is schizophrenic they can hear things or even have hallucinations and see things that aren’t really there. A schizophrenic person can also have a hard time see what the real world is compared to a dream. To a schizophrenic person they could wake up from a dream and not know that they woke up. I just knew that some schizophrenics will see things that aren’t really there and because of that all who have schizophrenia are portrayed as crazy or as murderers, or even as both. In the mainstream media people who have schizophrenia are portrayed as crazy and they become serial killers or murderers. Not many people know the truth about schizophrenia. They just believe what they see on TV, and TV is not always right but the viewers don’t want to know the truth. They just want a good story. All people who are schizophrenic are crazy. Media is just looking for a good story to tell. They show murders, robberies, and if a person turns out to be schizophrenic then they mention that. And by saying this murder was done by a schizophrenic than thats how the world will see schizophrenic people. They won't try to discover if all schizophrenic people are crazy or murderers. What I think we should do to deconstruct the myths about schizophrenia is to show the world what a schizophrenic person looks like and how they act. I know that might sound kinda boring but there will be some people who would want to know the truth about schizophrenia. I’m guessing most people who are schizophrenic are offended as to how the world thinks they act, think, and behave.
ReplyDeleteSchizophrenia; insane people that commit horrible, violent crimes against the innocent, right? This is an extremely mislead conception of a schizophrenic. Schizophrenia is actually a mental disorder that makes it hard to tell the difference between what is real and what is not, have normal emotions, think clearly, and act normal in social situations. Most schizophrenics lead a completely normal life, with the help of medication and good support. These people can hold down a job, and have a good friend system and family support. Although some Schizophrenics Media has yet to make a realistic portrayal of a schizophrenic. All movies have portrayed schizophrenics as murderers, violent people that belong in an insane asylum locked up. Unfortunately, they are misleading many people, along with themselves. With more information, and more people willing to share their lives and experiences with Schizophrenia, we may impact the minds of the people who believe that all Schizophrenics are dangerous, and shed some light on the extremely misunderstood mental illness.
ReplyDeleteI never knew about schizophrenia, I had heard of it, but never knew what it actually was. I always thought of schizophrenic people as sort of crazy, but they were able to control themselves. After reading more and discussing more on it, I now realize that they live very normal everyday lives. I think the scariest part about the whole illness is the fact that some have hallucinations, or hear voices. But also because of the fact that they could be between seeing a cow in a too too and have a conversation with you, or seeing horrid sights such as murder scenes or having a demon talking to you. The other scary thing is that it's in your own mind, and you can't control it. The other scary thing is they can't tell the difference between imaginary or reality. I do agree very so that media has mislead many people, because these people aren't dangerous, they make schizophrenics seem like killers and that they're not the type of people to be around. When, it's the total opposite, depending on the type, most schizophrenics fear others because they think people are out to get them. I feel that more people should understand that they just need support and the right amount of help.
ReplyDeleteI know that schizophrenia is a mental illness. It can cause people to have delusions and hear voices inside of their head. People who are diagnosed with schizophrenia sometimes can’t tell the difference between their imagination and what's really happening. I learned about schizophrenia in psychology class and when we learned about the women who drowned her five children because she said that the cartoon characters were telling her that she was a bad mother. I didn't really know much about schizophrenia before learning about it in class. The only thing i did know about schizophrenia is that it was a type of illness where it played with people's minds. Schizophrenia and other mental illnesses portrayed in the mainstream media are only showed negatively. When being talked about on television or in a commercial, it only talks about the worst and its usual in a violent manner. It rarely talks about people who were diagnosed with schizophrenia or a mental illness and were able to overcome it and live without experiencing such horrible and violent images in their imagination. Misconceptions are developed by people due to the mainstream media. Many people think that people diagnosed with schizophrenia are cruel, violent, or killers. Some people diagnosed with schizophrenia do end up killing someone or end up taking their life. Some also try to attempt committing suicide but are unsuccessful. Some people with schizophrenia are put on medication and end being a lot better. However, a lot of people just assume what they think instead knowing the truth on what actually could happen. We as a society, should research schizophrenia and look at results of what medicine can do to help people with schizophrenia. People need to hear some positive stuff about people with schizophrenia since all they hear is the negatives.
ReplyDeleteBefore enrolling in Psychology i did not know much about the mental disorder schizophrenia. If i was asked what schizophrenia was before learning about it, I would of answered when someone goes crazy and starts to murder people or do terrible things. Now after i see how many people in the world have it and still live on with their everyday lives it shows me that you do not have to be insane or crazy to have schizophrenia. I know schizophrenia involves hallucinations of any of the five senses, for example if you are having a hallucination some people with this mental disorder lose the ability to tell the difference between reality and their hallucination. If you do not take your medicine someone people hear voices in their brain that are giving them negative things or just people talking telling them stuff. Once on the medication you should act stable and not be looked at any difference as a normal person. Many people overlook this mental disorder and think that its only about the crazy people in life but they are wrong so many people have this disease and the ones that do not take their meds may become crazy but the ones that take them act a normal life and aren't crazy and going to kill someone. I have learned a lot about schizophrenia and have a totally new look on it now!
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