Fear of the mentally ill: empirical support for the common man's response

Abstract

The authors studied the hospital records of 400 hospitalized mentally ill patients for evidence of violent behavior leading to admission. They found that 36% of 321 admissions (excluding patients diagnosed as having a personality disorder or as drug-and/or alcohol-dependent) were preceded by some form of violent, fear-inspiring behavior. They suggest that mental health professionals deal with the general public's fear of the mentally ill on the basis of such findings rather than dismiss it as illogical.