Stigma Management of Mental Illness: Effects of Concealment, Discrimination, and Identification on Well-Being

This study examined how having a mental illness diagnosis indirectly helps versus harms well-being via social-psychological processes. We focused on the effects of identity concealment, personal and group discrimination, and personal and social identifications related to mental illness on psychological well-being. Among college students with a self-reported mental illness (N=255), we found that personal and group discrimination were each negatively related to well-being. Personal and social identifications were also related well-being, albeit in opposite directions. Personal identification was negatively related to well-being, while social identification with others who have a mental illness was positively related to well-being via access to in-group social support. Several indirect pathways linked concealment and discrimination to well-being via identification and sense of belonging.