Stigmatization, Mental Illness, and Systemic Evil

William Whitney, Ph.D., Psychology

Curtis Lehmann, Ph.D., Psychology

Emily Brown, Undergraduate, Psychology

Teresa Serna, Undergraduate, Psychology

Karen Kim, Undergraduate, Psychology

Christian communities often stigmatize mental illness by emphasizing a person’s individual sin as the cause of or one contributing factor to one’s mental illness or distress. This individualistic understanding of sin, however, has often been too narrow in focus, highlighting the person as the sinner and neglecting the role of systemic evil or sin. The emphasis on personal sin often results in blaming the afflicted individual while not acknowledging that biological, psychological, and sociocultural factors are also involved. This presentation argues that stigma toward mental illness may be decreased in Christian communities if systemic sin is also understood to play a role in the etiology and continuation of mental illness. While personal notions of sin still can play a part in mental illness, broadening our view to include systemic sin demonstrates how mental illness affects individuals in ways that are often outside of a person’s control.