Considering the latest meeting with my Scientific Writing and Communication group and the essay we have to write on labels, I thought of connecting them to Research Methods in terms of how important they can be, and how ethical labelling a patient actually is.
On the one hand, as a psychology student, I recognise and appreciate labelling and categorizing mental disorders and their importance when it comes to my studies and my job as a psychologist later in life (since I partially have to be a researcher as well). Without labelling, chaos would occur and trying to figure out what a patient might suffer from would be impossible.
On the other hand, as a person that suffers from a mental disorder, I can tell that living with a label does not only change your personal life, but it also changes the way others treat you. In my opinion, sufficient education is needed, so that labels should not be confused nor connected to stereotypes (think of the connection of the words schizophrenia and madness) and that patients understand that realising their condition is already part of accepting it and dealing with it.
As psychology students, what are your opinions on this matter? Do you think that labels should be used or not?
