Social inclusion, stigma and discrimination relating to employment and physical health: the experiences of people with a bipolar disorder diagnosis

Abstract

Background/Objectives: To date, schizophrenia and depression have been the main focus of mental illness stigma research. Such research has typically taken a quantitative approach and surveyed public opinion rather the subjective experiences of people with psychiatric diagnoses. The experiences of stigma and discrimination amongst people who have been given a diagnosis of bipolar disorder have been under-researched. With regard to this diagnostic group, some attention has been afforded to experiences of stigma and discrimination relating to employment in the U.S., but very little is known about the European context. Experiences of stigma and discrimination relating to the physical health needs of people with a bipolar disorder diagnosis have largely gone unexplored too. Also, little is known about the ways gender, age and ethnicity affect stigma experience. In order to redress this imbalance, this wholly qualitative study investigated the experiences of stigma and discrimination amongst people with a diagnosis of bipolar disorder, particularly in relation to employment and physical health.