Annotated Bibliography
Cullen, C., & McCann, E. (2015). Exploring the role of physical activity for people diagnosed with serious mental illness in Ireland. Journal of Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing, 22(1), 58-64.
In this article, individuals diagnosed with serious mental illness (SMI) were examined to determine their subjective experiences regarding physical activity. The main objective of this study was to elicit the opinions and views of physical activity among outpatients with serious mental illness, as well as to identify the role of physical activity in relation to recovery and quality of life. Challenges and barriers to physical activity were also highlighted in this study. Individuals who were attending a community mental health centre were targeted for this research, and the recruitment was held via a gatekeeper (i.e. clinical nurse manager), who distributed the information pack, containing the letter of invitation, consent …show more content…
By definition, physical activity refers to any bodily movement that utilises the muscles and expends energy (Mental Health Foundation, n.d.), while mental illness is the psychological dysfunction within an individual that is culturally atypical or unexpected and is usually associated with personal distress or impairment in functioning (Barlow & Durand, 2015). Historically, mental illness has been explained through three prominent approaches: supernatural, biological and psychological traditions. These approaches, together with their relevant historical background, will be elaborated throughout this essay, and the comparisons between the historical and modern approaches (i.e. physical activity or exercise) to mental illness will be covered, in hopes of discovering the best approach to take towards the mentally disabled of the 21st