One student's post this week reminded me of an article I just happened to read last week on the perception of responsibility and that we humans may create social distance when we perceive someone else as responsible for their mental health problems/illness (Feldman & Crandall, 2007). It seems we are more socially comfortable with others who have a mental health problem that we believe is beyond the individual's control.
This is one time that I find quantitative methods quite limiting and where I really want to ask a subset of the sample questions about what 'responsibility' means and what it means for an illness or condition to be beyond one's control; more importantly, why *precisely* does this matter?
In our current study, this issue of responsibility takes on curious meaning. Are we responsible in a good way or in a bad way for the fact that we have aged? Are we personally responsible for the increased reliance we then have on healthcare? When we age, generally speaking, we depend more on others. Again, I find myself thinking it odd that there could be a shelf life, so to speak, for how we 'value' others and the elderly, in particular. While intellectually I can understand the research we are reviewing and creating, I must admit I find it a bit humbling, as well.
AES
Feldman, D.B. & Crandall, C.S. (2007). Dimension of mental illness stigma: What about mental illness causes social rejection? Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 26(2) 137–154.
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