Images of the "Insane," the "Mentally Ill," and the "Depressed" in Nouméa, New Caledonia

Goodfellow, Benjamin; Defromont, Laurent; Calandreau, Fanny; Roelandt, Jean‐Luc

doi:10.2753/imh0020-7411390105

Cited by 5 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…Comparing our results with those of the other MHGP survey sites [13], we find, as in previous studies, that the distinction between "insane/mentally ill" and "depressive" is strong, both in metropolitan France and in overseas France [8,14]. The representations of the "insane" and the "mentally ill" are those of a person who is dangerous, unpredictable, incurable and therefore often excluded; those of the "depressive" are more acceptable, non-dangerous (except for suicide attempts) and curable: "The disturbances affecting the state of mind and "being" are everywhere identified as specific to the "depressive" as compared to the "insane" and the "mentally ill", whose disturbances manifest themselves essentially at the level of the motor sphere and at the level of "acting"" [15].…”

Section: Representation Of the "Insane" The "Mentally Ill" And The "supporting

confidence: 87%

Social Representations and Anthropo-Cultural Aspects of Mental Health in French Polynesia in the Survey "Mental Health in the General Population: Images and Realities".

Amadéo¹,

BENRADIA²,

DAVID³

et al. 2020

Preprint

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Purpose: Better know social representations and socio-cultural aspects of mental illness (FP) is critical to reduce stigma and improve care and prevention of psychiatric illness. Methods: The Mental Health in General Population Survey (MHGP) was carried out in French Polynesia (FP) in 2015 and 2017, with questionnaires on social representations of the "insane", the "mentally ill", the "depressive" and the various types of help and care. The representative sample of 968 people was built using the quota method. The data were collected in public spaces, anonymously. Results: The origin of mental health problems is considered mainly as physical, organic or hereditary. Addictive behaviours are the cause of mental illness for 1/4 of respondents. According to the Polynesian population, the “insane” or the “mentally ill” are perceived as excluded, irresponsible, unaware of their conditions and difficult to cure. Depressed people are seen as responsible for their actions, aware of their conditions and who can be treated. Conclusion: The results of this survey show stigmatizing representations of the “insane” and the mentally ill” and significant use of traditional care. They have been incorporated into the mental health plan for FP to improve the care and promotion of mental health.

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Section: Representation Of the "Insane" The "Mentally Ill" And The "supporting

confidence: 87%

Social Representations and Anthropo-Cultural Aspects of Mental Health in French Polynesia in the Survey "Mental Health in the General Population: Images and Realities".

Amadéo¹,

BENRADIA²,

DAVID³

et al. 2020

Preprint

Self Cite

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“…By contrast, the label of bipolar disorder is not associated with dangerousness (Martinez et al, 2011), while eating disorders are rated low (Bjorkman et al, 2008;Crisp et al, 2000;Mukherjee et al, 2002). A qualitative study of public reactions to various labels found that 'insane' was more associated with dangerousness than 'mentally ill', while 'depressed' was the least associated (Goodfellow et al, 2010).…”

Section: Psychiatric Labelling and Belief In Dangerousnessmentioning

confidence: 97%

Belief in the dangerousness of people with mental disorders: A review

Jorm

Reavley

Ross

2012

Aust N Z J Psychiatry

101

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“…Table 1 presents the sociodemographic characteristics by sex of people that died by suicide (n ¼ 316) during the 1992-2016 period compared with a representative sample (n ¼ 968) of the general population of FP from the MHGP survey. 13 In the general population, the sex ratio was 1:1, but in the suicide population, there was a clear male predominance, with 241 males (76%) versus 75 females (24%) (sex ratio ¼ 3.2:1). The results showed that males die by suicide significantly more frequently than females (v 2 (1) ¼ 135.22, P < 0.0001).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…At least one mental health disorder was identified in 100 of 316 (31.6%) of cases at the time of suicide compared with 42.8% in the general population of the MHGP survey (over a lifetime period). 13 Mood disorder was the most common diagnosis (45 of 316; 14.2%), followed by alcohol and drug addiction (23 of 316; 7.3%). Psychotic disorders were diagnosed in 5.4% (17 of 316) of the cases (more in males [14 of 241; 5.8%] than females [three of 75; 4.0%]) and personality disorders in 2.5% (eight of 316).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Suicide in French Polynesia: a retrospective analysis based on medicolegal documents and interview with family

et al. 2021

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Objective To analyse the epidemiological data on suicide in French Polynesia (FP). Methods Data on suicides were collected from the Public Health Direction, Judicial Police Investigations Court of Justice records, the Centre d’Opérations et de Renseignements de la Gendarmerie, patient records for those hospitalized in psychiatry and from psychological autopsies. Results The dataset consisted of 316 suicide cases in FP over 25 years (1992–2016). In FP, suicide was more frequent in men (sex ratio 3.2:1), young people (mean age, 34.4 years) and individuals with previously diagnosed psychiatric disorders (100 of 316; 31.6%) The most common method of suicide was hanging (276 of 316; 87.3%). A history of previous suicide attempts was found in 25 of 56 (44.6%) of suicide cases, when documented. The most common potential triggering factors for suicide were emotional problems. The suicide rates have remained stable during 1992–2016 (mean 10.6/100 000 inhabitants per year), with periods of economic crises increasing suicide rates. Conclusions These results provide valuable information to enable the effective targeting of suicide prevention strategies toward those at high risk. Economic crises had larger impacts in the French overseas territories than mainland France. Given the unprecedented economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic in FP, there is an urgent need to implement suicide epidemiological surveillance and prevention programmes.

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Images of the "Insane," the "Mentally Ill," and the "Depressed" in Nouméa, New Caledonia

Cited by 5 publications

References 36 publications

Social Representations and Anthropo-Cultural Aspects of Mental Health in French Polynesia in the Survey "Mental Health in the General Population: Images and Realities".

Social Representations and Anthropo-Cultural Aspects of Mental Health in French Polynesia in the Survey "Mental Health in the General Population: Images and Realities".

Belief in the dangerousness of people with mental disorders: A review

Suicide in French Polynesia: a retrospective analysis based on medicolegal documents and interview with family

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