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July 14th, 2012 
FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda FRIDAY, July 13 (HealthDay News) — Movies often stereotype
people with schizophrenia as being violent and unpredictable, says a
researcher who claims Hollywood dispenses misinformation about symptoms,
causes and treatment of this mental illness.
For the study, published in the July issue of Psychiatric
Services, Patricia Owen of the psychology department at St. Mary’s
University in San Antonio, Texas, reviewed 41 English-language films
released between 1990 and 2010 that featured at least one main character
with schizophrenia.
Owen found that 83 percent of those characters were portrayed as
dangerous or violent to others or themselves. Almost one-third engaged in
homicidal behavior, and one-quarter committed suicide, the researcher
said.
According to the U.S. National Institute of Mental Health, the risk of
violence is small among people with schizophrenia. But suicide risk is
higher than average. About 10 percent, mostly young men, do kill
themselves, the agency notes.
Delusions, auditory and visual hallucinations, and disorganized speech
or thought were displayed by most of the characters, the study author
pointed out in a news release from the American Psychiatric Association.
But much more common symptoms of schizophrenia — such as flat affect,
lack of speech and lack of motivation — were seen much less
frequently.
Although schizophrenia incidence is nearly equal among women and men,
almost 80 percent of the characters with schizophrenia were male, the
study found.
The review noted, however, the movies did get some characterizations of
schizophrenia right. Specifically, about half of the characters had low
socioeconomic status, which is consistent with data on the illness.
Moreover, about half of the movies depicted or alluded to the use of
medication to treat the mental illness. Psychotherapy and group therapy
were not portrayed often.
Owen suggested that more research is needed to understand how films
influence public perceptions about schizophrenia, and to determine how to
increase empathy and understanding.
Films featuring a character with schizophrenia include A Beautiful
Mind and Donnie Darko.
More information
The U.S. National Institute of Mental Health provides more information
on schizophrenia.
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