Literature notes that often society react to mental illness similar way to crime and the criminals (Marsh et al, 2000 and Pilgrim, 2005). Labelling theory is beneficial to understand the stigma of mental illness. This approach to deviance focuses on the reaction of others in maintaining and amplifying rule breaking or secondary deviance (Marsh et al., 2000). The labelling process can have a detrimental effect on a person's status and identity (Marsh et al., 2000 and Pilgrim, 2005).Their old identity is discarded and a new 'master status' label takes its place. In the case of the mentally ill individual, his or her condition comes to define who they are, regardless of the other roles they may have (such as parenthood or their job). Their stigmatized
