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Published on: September 28, 2018
Involuntary Psychiatric Commitments Among Non-Western Immigrants During the Muhammad Cartoon Controversy in Denmark.
Tim A Bruckner1,2, Parvati Singh3, Camilla Hvidtfeldt4
1Center for Population, Inequality, and Policy, University of California, Irvine, USA. brucknet@uci.edu.
Societal intolerance may increase involuntary psychiatric commitments for non-Western immigrants during public controversies. A Danish cartoon controversy correlated with a 43% rise in these commitments.
Area of Science:
- Psychiatry
- Sociology
- Public Health
Background:
- Involuntary psychiatric commitment is initiated for individuals posing risks.
- A 2005 Danish cartoon controversy sparked international incidents and protests.
- The controversy may have decreased societal tolerance for non-Western immigrants' behavior.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if the Danish cartoon controversy coincided with increased involuntary psychiatric commitments among non-Western immigrants.
- To analyze the impact of societal events on mental health service utilization.
Main Methods:
- Utilized Box-Jenkins interrupted time-series analysis.
- Analyzed data from January 1995 to December 2006 (48 quarters).
- Focused on new involuntary psychiatric commitments among non-Western immigrants.
Main Results:
- A significant 43% increase in involuntary psychiatric commitments was observed during the cartoon controversy (p < .01).
- This rise was not explained by general changes in mental health service seeking.
- Findings support the hypothesis linking public controversy to increased commitments.
Conclusions:
- Population-wide controversies can reduce societal tolerance for perceived deviant behavior.
- The study suggests a link between the Danish cartoon controversy and heightened involuntary psychiatric commitments in non-Western immigrants.
- This highlights the potential impact of socio-political events on mental health outcomes for specific demographics.
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