Have you ever thought about how mental illness is/can be linked to where you lie on the socioeconomic ladder? Have you thought about the stresses of poverty and how that could be bad for your mental health? In this research paper that is what we'll be discussing. Why is social class related to mental illness. The study Socioeconomic Status and Mental Illness: Tests of the Social Causations and Selection Hypotheses by Christopher Hudson, PhD, states, “The lower the socioeconomic status of an individual is, the higher is his or her risk of mental illness” (Hudson, 2005)” If they are related, then which comes first, poverty or mental illness.
Poverty is the last rung of the socioeconomic ladder, the lowest of the social classes. There's many stress …show more content…
What is not determined is which comes first. Does poverty precede mental illness, or is it the other way around. There’s a lot of research on both sides. The case for poverty is backed by the Prevalence and Development of Psychiatric Disorders in Childhood and Adolescence which says, “The conditions of poverty can cause certain mental health disorders and that alleviating poverty can have positive effects on children's mental health” (As qtd in Florida Council Mental Illness Fact Sheet). This demonstrates that poverty can be a cause of mental illness, and easing poverty can help mental health. However there is also research that states there is not a certain answer to that question.. As stated in the article Poverty & Mental Illness: You Can’t Have One Without the Other, “What was not clear was the direction of their findings, i.e., which phenomenon, mental illness or poverty, preceded which” (Carney). Similarly there is research that states neither one comes first, rather it moves in a cycle. As stated in Psych Central, “It’s a vicious circle where both poverty seems linked to greater rates of mental illness, and in some cases, certain kinds of mental illness seem linked to a greater likelihood of living in poverty” (Grohol). This exemplifies what all of the research in this article seems to say. It is possible for poverty to cause mental illness, and it is possible for mental illness to cause
Poverty is the last rung of the socioeconomic ladder, the lowest of the social classes. There's many stress …show more content…
What is not determined is which comes first. Does poverty precede mental illness, or is it the other way around. There’s a lot of research on both sides. The case for poverty is backed by the Prevalence and Development of Psychiatric Disorders in Childhood and Adolescence which says, “The conditions of poverty can cause certain mental health disorders and that alleviating poverty can have positive effects on children's mental health” (As qtd in Florida Council Mental Illness Fact Sheet). This demonstrates that poverty can be a cause of mental illness, and easing poverty can help mental health. However there is also research that states there is not a certain answer to that question.. As stated in the article Poverty & Mental Illness: You Can’t Have One Without the Other, “What was not clear was the direction of their findings, i.e., which phenomenon, mental illness or poverty, preceded which” (Carney). Similarly there is research that states neither one comes first, rather it moves in a cycle. As stated in Psych Central, “It’s a vicious circle where both poverty seems linked to greater rates of mental illness, and in some cases, certain kinds of mental illness seem linked to a greater likelihood of living in poverty” (Grohol). This exemplifies what all of the research in this article seems to say. It is possible for poverty to cause mental illness, and it is possible for mental illness to cause