Stigma Against Mental Illness and Cerebral Palsy in China

This dissertation examines the stigmatization of two health conditions: mental disability and physical disability in the context of China. In particular, it addresses two main themes: the processes and impacts of stigma, and the variables that moderate the association of stigma with social attributes. The first paper applied a qualitative approach to identify the sources of burdens of raising a child with cerebral palsy in China and how stigma and “face” as a cultural factor affect children with cerebral palsy and their families. The findings showed that families with children of cerebral palsy report tremendous financial burdens, insufficient educational and medical services, as well as discrimination among family members and communities. An overwhelming majority of caregivers reported to have had the feeling of “loss of face,” while family members considered the child with cerebral palsy as “useless” and “burdensome.” Their common remarks o “send away the child to orphanage” and “give another birth to a normal child”, reinforced caregivers’ feeling of helplessness, and put many family relationships to an end. The second and third papers on stigma and mental illness studied the un