GERMANY -- by Sabrina Penney

I. COUNTRY: Germany

II. TOTAL POPULATION: 80,800,000 (2014 est.)

III. POPULATION DEMOGRAPHICS: Age/Sex structure estimates for 2010=

     0–14 years: 13.7% (male 5,768,366/female 5,470,516)

   15–64 years: 66.1% (male 27,707,761/female 26,676,759)

   65 years and over: 20.3% (male 7,004,805/female 9,701,551)

Ethnicities- Stats for 2012

Europeans       94%     77,679,000

Americans       0.5%    418,000

Asians, Australians, and Oceania        2.5%    2,034,000

Africans (Including White Africans)   0.7%    577,000

Mixed or unspecified background       1.5%    1,208,000

Total population          100%               81,913,000

Information for this section retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Germany

IV. ESTIMATED NUMBER OF PEOPLE WITH MENTAL ILLNESS: According to euro.who.net: 27% of the adult population (here defined as aged 18–65) have experienced at least one of a series of mental disorders in the past year. With an estimated 83 million people being affected by mental illness, and those over 65 are not even accounted for. Neuropsychiatric disorders are the second cause of disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) with the top four being: unipolar depressive disorder, alcohol use disorder, self-inflicted injuries, and Alzheimer’s and other dementias. Also according to the most recent available data 123,853 people commit suicide every year, out of which almost 80% are men.

V. RELIGION / CULTURAL BELIEFS / SOCIAL CONTEXT: 

Religion- Statistics from 2008: Christianity is the largest religion in Germany, with around 51.5 million adherents equaling 62.8%. Of those 30% are Catholics, 29.9% are Protestants, and the remaining 0.5% of the population belong to smaller denominations.

The second largest religion is Islam with an estimated 3.8 to 4.3 million adherents equaling 4.6% to 5.2%. Then Buddhism with 250,000 and Judaism with an estimated 0.3%. Hinduism has some 90,000 participants (0.1%). Germans with no stated religious adherence make up 34.1% of the population.

Cultural beliefs- Besides being a mecca for music, cuisine, art, architecture, literature, and philosophy Germany has also established a high level of gender equality, promotes disability rights, and is legally and socially tolerant towards homosexuals. Gays and lesbians can legally adopt their partner's biological children, and civil unions have been permitted since 2001.

Information for this section retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Germany#Demographics.

Social Context- According to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Germany:

“Germany has one of the world's highest levels of education, technological development, and economic productivity. Since the end of World War II, the number of students entering universities has more than tripled, and the trade and technical schools are among the world's best. With a per capita income of about $41,370 Germany is a broadly middle class society.”

IMPACT OF BELIEFS / SOCIAL CONTEXT ON PERCEPTION OF MENTAL ILLNESS AND PEOPLE WITH MENTAL ILLNESS: 

Interestingly enough I could not find much information on mental illness in Germany and even less of the perception of those that are diagnosed with such.  I did discover though that there is an estimate of 10% of the population that is diagnosed with some form of mental illness. The negative attitudes and rejection by the public towards individuals with mental illness (particularly those diagnosed with Schizophrenia) are some of the main obstacles.  The most common consequence of discrimination for people with schizophrenia are social distance, exclusion, and discrimination in housing and employment. (Crisp et al., 2000; Link, 2000; World Psychiatric Association, 1998).

 VI. METHODS OF SUPPORT FOR PEOPLE WITH MENTAL ILLNESS: 

Hospitalization is common and under guardianship law, a patient can be hospitalized by his or her guardian against his or her will if there is a danger to his health that cannot otherwise be dealt with. Medication is still the go to therapeutic treatment with atypical antipsychotics being the most prescribed course of treatment. If a patient needs psychotherapy chances are he or she will have to wait longer than six months (Schulz, 117).

VII. PERSONAL OBSERVATIONS

I wanted to research Germany because of their history of eugenics. Although it surprised me that I could not find very much information on how the population of Germans view those with mental illness it became clear as to why when I realized the negative extent of their views. It appears to be one of those situations where it is not acknowledged and the information relative to the illness is not accurately understood by the people of Germany. There is a negative connotation by the public on those diagnosed. It is unfair and ignorant to assume that someone with a mental illness in either dangerous or unemployable. Their lack of knowledge and therapeutic processes is saddening.

VIII. REFERENCES: (APA FORMAT)

Crisp et al., 2000; Link, 2000; World Psychiatric Association, 1998

Schulz, Michael. (2004). Mental health services in Germany. Retrieved from https://www.radcliffehealth.com/sites/radcliffehealth.com/files/books/samplechapter/4369/Brimblecombe%20chpt%2004-636f9080rdz.pdf

Wikipedia., (2014). Demographics of Germany. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Germany.

World Health Organization Regional Office for Germany. (2014). Data and statistics. Retrieved from http://www.euro.who.int/en/health-topics/noncommunicable-diseases/mental-health/data-and-statistics.