The Dangers of Psychiatric Labeling for Youth

A new study published in the Journal of Health and Social Behavior suggests that self-labeling with psychiatric terminology such as "mental illness" may harm youth self-esteem. The study draws on sociological theories to investigate the impact of self-labeling on youth experiencing mental health problems. The findings support the sociological "outsight" perspective, which critically considers the negative social consequences associated with self-labeling. The researchers found that youth who stopped self-labeling had improvements in their self-esteem, indicating that self-labels are generally harmful to youth self-esteem.