{"id":281,"date":"2026-09-24T18:28:35","date_gmt":"2026-09-24T18:28:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/routledgelearning.com\/communitymentalhealth\/?p=281"},"modified":"2026-10-08T15:45:05","modified_gmt":"2026-10-08T15:45:05","slug":"chapter-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/routledgelearning.com\/communitymentalhealth\/chapter-3\/","title":{"rendered":"Chapter 3"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Chapter 3<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

Replacing Stigmatizing Beliefs and Behaviors with Affirming Attitudes and Actions that Advance Recovery and Self-Determination<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Chapter Overview<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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The stigma of mental illness can be as disabling as the symptoms of the psychiatric disorder themselves.  We describe stigma as occurring at the public and self-levels. Public and self-stigma are understood by social cognitive constructs including stereotypes, prejudice, and discrimination.  The goal of changing public stigma, for example, is to decrease hurtful impact of these constructs on the personal life goals of the person with mental illness.  But as many advocates note, changing the troubling effects off stigma is not enough.  Stigma change is most effective when the public replaces stigma with affirming attitudes.  Affirming attitudes represent the optimism of recovery, the current vision of up-to-date service programs.  They include positive beliefs about mental health and corresponding services.  Despite recurring symptoms, people can achieve their life goals with hope and self-determination.  Attitudes are not enough; equally important are affirming attitudes such as reasonable accommodations.  What can one\u2019s community do to accommodate the person\u2019s pursuit of their goals?  The chapter then dives deeply on how a person might replace prejudice and discrimination with affirming attitudes.  Education and contact are two approaches that have been well-studied for stigma change and promoting affirming attitudes and actions. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Video<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Watch co-author Patrick W. Corrigan introduce Chapter 3. He shares his academic background and explains the chapter’s focus on two key areas: the impact of stigma on individuals with serious mental illness and strategies for fostering supportive community environments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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