People With Mental Health Issues at Increased Risk of Causing Violent Offenses - Essay Example

People With Mental Health Issues at Increased Risk of Causing Violent Offenses The Risk of People with Mental Health Issues causing Violent Offenses Introduction The term mental disorder refers to a chemical or psychological disturbance of the brain that causes an individual to adopt unacceptable behaviors or thought patterns. Mental disorders have become common in many societies in developed, as well as undeveloped nations. It is presumed that all human beings will experiences problems such as depression or anxiety at one time or another in their lives. Mental disorder such as post traumatic stress disorder, though, are more lasting and require extensive treatment. There are certain mental disorders such as schizophrenia or bipolar disorder, that are permanent and have to be managed, if the victim is to have a productive life. Some of the more common mental disorders include mood disorders like dysthymic disorder, depressive disorder, and bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia. Others are anxiety disorders like phobias, and post traumatic stress disorder, and eating disorders like binge-eating, bulimia nervosa, and anorexia nervosa, Autism, and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, and Alzheimer’s, which tends to affect the elderly (Monahan, 1995). People with mental disorders such as eating disorders or panic disorders are not likely to harm anyone other than themselves. However, people suffering from schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and Alzheimer’s could cause accidents, or harm others intentionally or unintentionally. The Predicament of People of Mental Disorders In most developed nations, the connection between mental illness and the perpetration of violent acts tends to be understated. This is because there is a push towards ensuring that people with mental disorders are treated in a fair and non-discriminatory manner. This is a laudable motive, and should be adopted in other societies because many people with mental illness do not commit felonies. Indeed, they tend to be exposed to much more discrimination than people who do not have mental disturbances. Many people link the mentally disturbed with violent acts even if they have never actually witnessed such a scenario. This causes them to avoid those who have obvious indications of mental disturbance in public places. The Perception of People with Mental Disorders People with mental disorders are thus forced to contend with difficulties that are never experienced by ordinary individuals. For example, they find that other people will avoid them, and stop their families from socializing with them. In some cases, people will even refuse to employ, rent to, or work with individuals who have mental disorders. This then results in people with mental disorders experiencing isolation, reduced self confidence, and even hopelessness. This worsens the condition of people with mental disorders, who internalize the negative conditions they are exposed to, and, due to the shame they feel, hide any physical symptoms of their mental disorders and refuse to seek medical assistance. This, in itself, can lead to such a deterioration of the mentally disturbed individual’s condition, that he or she begins to commit unusual acts that may include felonies. It could be said that the way the society perceives people with mental disturbances is itself a contributing factor to the deterioration of their conditions. It is a common thing for entertainment channels to portray felons such as serial killers, or violent people in programs as individuals who are suffering from some type of untreated mental disorder. Such programs also tend to feature psychiatrists giving a series of characteristics, such as unsociability and unpredictability, which could be used to determine those who may be suffering from mental disorders. There are numerous other stereotypes and erroneous characteristics that are ascribed to different mental disorders such as schizophrenia. There are hardly any programs that highlight the positive aspects of people with mental disorders. According to Monahan (1995), this is what has caused so many people in America to fear associating with mentally disturbed individuals. According to a research that was detailed by Douglas, Guy and Hart, (2009), 38% of American citizens polled categorically stated that they would not be willing to be familiar, or have their family members become friends with individuals who had mental disorders. Further, 64% of the participants stated that they did not want to work alongside co-workers who were presently dealing with mental disorders. An amazing 68% indicated that they were totally opposed to an individual with a mental disorder marrying into their family. Their further isolation, due to inaccurate beliefs about them, is something that causes the mentally disturbed to further retreat into their own unreal worlds. In such a state, they are more likely to strike out, or hit at others for perceived wrongs. The Other Side of Mental Health Issues The unfortunate reality, though, is that people with mental disorders are more likely to commit violent crimes than individuals who do not have these disturbances. According to Monahan (1995), research has established that individuals with serious mental disorders like Schizophrenia are more likely to commit violent crimes. This includes family violence, or violent acts against co-workers and friends. The Connection between Violent Acts and Serious Mental Disorders There are different researches that have been conducted into the subject of mentally ill individuals committing misdemeanors, as well as violent felonies. According to a meta-analysis of 204 researches on the subject of psychosis, which documented by Douglas, Guy, and Hart (2009), the existence of psychosis was seen to cause a 49% to 68% rise in the probability of committing violent crimes. The victims of psychosis commonly experience hallucinations, delusions, and the inability to determine what constitutes reality and what does not. It is not unusual for individuals experiencing extreme psychosis to feel hunted and mistreated by others even if this is untrue. According to Joyal, Dubreucq and Gendron (2007), even in the absence of dug or alcohol abuse, the individuals who suffer from mental disorders such as schizophrenia are more likely to instigate interpersonal violence in the home or workplace. Researchers have established that people with mental disorders perpetrate 15% of all incidences of community violence (Joyal, Dubreucq and Gendron, 2007). Further research into the lives of people living with bipolar disorder by Fazel, Lichtenstein and Grann (2010) established that 8.4% of the population living with bipolar disorder committed violent acts in comparison to 3.5% of Sweden’s general population. Moreover, more research conducted by Van Dorn, Volavka and Johnson, (2012) established that mentally disturbed individuals are more likely to perpetrate extreme acts of violence if they have been abusing drugs or alcohol. The mentally disturbed, though, were more likely to commit more heinous acts than the rest of the population. According to Taylor (2008), there is a very real connection between heinous acts of violence and advanced psychosis. In addition, there is a likelihood that there are not many researches conducted on the issue because psychotic and schizophrenic individuals are more likely to attack family members. For the sake of keeping their mentally ill relatives from the penal system, families are more likely to keep from reporting such acts of violence. The Consequences of Non-Treatment The people who have mental disorders are not only likely to commit felonies due to their altered states of mind; they also tend to find themselves in circumstances that increase their chances of committing crimes. For example, they are more likely to be homeless. According to Douglas, Guy and Hart (2009), it is people with mental illnesses who are more likely to be homeless. This means that they live abysmal lives, and are victimized in different ways on a regular basis. They also use garbage cans to get food pieces to feed themselves. People who have untreated mental disorders are also likely to be incarcerated. According to Douglas, Guy and Hart (2009), mentally disturbed persons make-up 16% of the prison population in the United States. These individuals usually serve time in prison due to committing various misdemeanors, or carrying out violent acts due to psychotic thoughts. When in prison, these individuals are then exposed to even more violent prisoners; something that compels them to grow even more disturbed. The longer this situation remains, the more seriously disturbed these patients are likely to become. Society’s acceptance of the Danger Posed by People with Mental Disorders The fact that mentally disturbed people pose a real problem sometimes is not something that sits well with the rest of the society. The existence of mentally disturbed individuals is unpalatable, as well as distressing for most citizens. This is because these individuals would seem to be victims as well as perpetrators of violent acts (Monahan, 1995). Their families and friends remained tormented about how to handle them, or when to hide their acts of violence from the authorities in order to keep them from being incarcerated. Even the health professionals and advocates of the people with mental disorders experience fatigue and discouragement when dealing with the complications that they have to encounter. They are aware that there is a need to deal with the stigma experienced by those with mental disorders; yet also understand that their own clients could quickly turn on them and make them the victims of violent acts (Lidz, Banks, Simon, Schubert and Mulvey, 2007). Moreover, there is no need for this predicament to prevent an honest discussion about the challenges faced by people with mental disorders from taking place. For example, such advocates could hold discussions about finding ways of minimizing the incidence of attacks perpetrated by those with mental disorders. Other Factors that Exacerbate the Mental Condition of the Mentally disturbed Mentally ill individuals may not have the capacity to fight off the yearning to consume drugs or alcohol. The abuse of these substances could further negatively affect their disorders. When any individual takes alcohol or drugs over an extended period of time, his or her decision-making capacities is negatively affected. This is a permanent change that cannot be undone. For individuals already suffering from mental disorders, such a reality could effect a complete transformation to an extremely violent personality. Conclusion The connection between mental disorders and violent acts need not remain a concern of the medical community due to society’s reluctance to tackle the controversial issue. The public has to admit that even though it is a highly politicized and emotive issue, there is a need to tackle it. Acknowledging this will create a better balance in the treatment of individuals with mental disorders in the light of existing evidence. The fact is that there is a very real risk of generating unnecessary fear through the sensationalist media channels if the reality of the dangers posed by mentally ill individuals is exposed. This could result in even more discrimination for people dealing with mental disorders. However, it is not practical to avoid the existing substantiated evidence that shows that people with mental disorders are more likely to commit acts of violence than those without mental issues. Doing so would simply result in disregarding a perfect opportunity to stop such violence from taking place. When people with mental disorders act out in violence, their victims are most likely to be their own family members and friends; as all other members of society will be reluctant to be around them on a regular basis. Unfortunately, their family members are the ones who are least likely to report their errant behavior to the authorities. There is a need for balance in considering how to keep all members of society safe from others who might cause them harm- whether these be their relatives, or not. References Douglas, K. S., Guy, L. S., & Hart, S. D. (2009). Psychosis as a risk factor for violence to others: A meta-analysis. Psychol Bull, 135(5), 679-706. Fazel, S., Lichtenstein, P., & Grann, M. (2010). Bipolar disorder and violent crime. Archives of General Psychiatry, 67, 931–938. Joyal, C. C., Dubreucq, J-L., & Gendron, C. (2007). Major mental disorders and violence: A critical update. Current Psychiatry Reviews, 3, 33–50. Lidz, C., Banks, S., Simon, L., Schubert, C., & Mulvey, E. (2007). Violence and mental illness: A new analytic approach. Law and Human Behavior, 31(1), 23-31. Monahan, J. (1995). The clinical prediction of violent behavior. Michigan: J. Aronson. Taylor, P. J. (2008). Psychosis and violence: Stories, fears, and reality. Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 53, 647–659. Van Dorn, R., Volavka, J., & Johnson, N. (2012). Mental disorder and violence: Is there a relationship beyond substance use? Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 47(3), 487-503. Read More