The talkbacks and Facebook are the most common platforms for the derogatory use of terms from the world of mental health - according to the "Stigma Index" for 2022 conducted by the Anush association, in collaboration with Yifaat Media Research.
The index, published for the second year, ranks the most offensive statements that appeared in 2022 on the Internet, in advertisements, on television, in the public sphere and in everyday life.
These are posts and tweets, as well as speeches and statements by elected officials, opinion leaders and policy makers, which included the terms "psychic", "psychopath", "mentally ill", "schizophrenic" and "split personality" as derogatory terms.
As part of the research, 1,450 articles from the media in Israel and 78,399 online conversations were located in which these terms were used derogatorily, and it was found that the talkbacks (96%), Facebook (81%) and the forums (76%) led in this parameter.
It also emerged that elected officials are responsible for a quarter of the uses of these words in an incorrect or offensive manner.
However, there was a decrease in the use of these terms as a derogatory word on the Internet - from 83% in 2021 to 74% last year - which may indicate the beginning of a positive trend.
Dr. Hela Hadas, CEO of the Anush Association: "Extreme and mocking use of the description of the characteristics of the disease harms the mentally challenged and their families, their legitimacy to seek help and their ability to integrate into society."
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