Responses to nervous breakdowns in America over a 40-year period. Mental health policy implications

The 1957 and 1976 Americans View Their Mental Health surveys from the Institute of Social Research were partially replicated in the 1996 General Social Survey (GSS) to examine the policy implications of people's responses to feeling an impending nervous breakdown. Questions about problems in modern living were added to the GSS to provide a profile of the public's view of mental health problems. Results were compared for 1957, 1976, and 1996. In 1957, 19% of respondents had experienced an impending nervous breakdown; in 1996, 26% had had this experience. Between 1957 and 1996, participants increased their use of informal social supports, decreased their use of physicians, and increased their use of nonmedical mental health professionals. These findings support policies that strengthen informal support seeking and access to effective psychosocial treatments rather than current mental health reimbursement practices, which emphasize the role of primary care physicians.