The Discourse Around Mental Health Remains Superficial

What the backlash against Chappell Roan can teach us about mental illness stigma.

Reviewed by Margaret Foley

Key points

• Mental illness stigma remains a reality in the culture today.
• Stan culture often amplifies harassment of public figures online.
• Chappell Roan is voicing what many celebrities feel regarding pressure under the spotlight.

In a social media age, mental health and “self-care” have become rhetorically captivating sound bites. Yet despite a seeming greater dialogue surrounding the importance of mental health and taking care of one’s self, the research suggests that mental illness continues to be stigmatized in the culture. Indeed, the swift backlash musician Chappell Roan has received for canceling two festival performances in order to take a step back from the spotlight and take care of her mental health brings this issue to the forefront.

The trolling and harassment Roan has received on social media platforms demonstrate that the prioritization of mental health seen in the culture is simply lip service when viewed against the reality of what happens if or when a celebrity demonstrates their emotional or psychological vulnerability to the public. In fact, contemporary research has reported a mismatch between the public’s perception of mental health and the campaigns that promote mental health awareness in an effort to reduce stigma (Pavlova & Berkers, 2022). Stigma is defined as the disgrace or shame associated with a particular dimension of a person’s self, such as having a mental illness diagnosis (Aalai, 2024). Indeed, stigma has been identified as a significant barrier to seeking help for individuals who are suffering mentally (Aalai, 2024).

Pavlova & Berkers (2022) find that media portrayals of mental health continue to be sensationalized and framed in such a way that stigma is reinforced. This is particularly counterintuitive in our social media age, where consumers regularly confront more content related to self-care and mental health and wellness. Thus, to the untrained eye—or anecdotally—it may appear as if the public is more compassionate toward and sensitive to issues related to mental illness. Indeed, research has identified that social media platforms such as X (formerly known as Twitter) can serve as pathways for sharing mental health resources, supporting others, and increasing awareness of mental illness (literature review Pavlova & Berkers, 2022). However, as is often the case with social media platforms, they remain a double-edged sword; these platforms also commonly serve to transmit inaccurate information about mental health and illness, trivialize mental illness, promote inaccurate beliefs, and troll and harass those who share mental health struggles.

The recent dialogue surrounding Roan serves to demonstrate that, despite seemingly greater discourse regarding the importance of mental health in popular culture, stigma remains entrenched in public perceptions of mental illness. Roan, for instance, has gotten backlash for trying to draw boundaries between her public life as a performer and her private one. This despite sharing on her own Instagram that she is living with bipolar II disorder and trying to navigate maintaining her mental health while also grappling with her recent catapult into the spotlight.

Becoming famous in a digital age can be particularly harrowing because online fans can turn against the object of their affection swiftly and with relentless force. I use the term “object” deliberately—as young female celebrities such as Roan are particularly apt to becoming objectified, stripped of their humanity or sense of personhood. Indeed, as The New York Times recently reported regarding the fickle nature of Roan’s online fans: “The phase of stan culture that’s been emerging in the past year or so is far messier and contingent. Online fandom can swarm rapidly, and provide an unrepeatable boost. But it’s also impossible to fully tend to, and loyalty can collapse along myriad fault lines” (Caramanica, 2024).

Indeed, the notion that social media platforms can serve to raise “awareness” regarding mental illness is somewhat problematic, given that framing regarding mental health and illness needs to be accurate and resonant for such an effect. For instance, researchers have identified that “awareness” frames on X can be vague or superficial, lacking any meaningful depth (Pavlova & Berkers, 2022). Such a finding tracks with paying lip service to promoting “self-care” online while also resisting what this entails when Roan, who has clearly demonstrated needing a pause from the spotlight, is met with resistance online from fans and trolls alike. In other words, for awareness to be meaningful, it has to be accompanied by changes in public perception or behavior when confronted with issues surrounding mental health and illness.

In other words, it isn’t enough for a social media user to say they want a work-life balance or that mental health should be respected. When a public figure such as Roan acts in a way that advocates for her own mental health, actionable behaviors would be to praise or minimally support such behaviors, even if this response may translate to fans missing out on a planned public performance. In order to become allies and reduce the stigma associated with mental illness, we have to be willing to have uncomfortable conversations and allow celebrities such as Roan the privacy and space to navigate their fame with dignity. I applaud such a young performer and musician for speaking out and using her voice to advocate for herself, despite the backlash and potential for her fans to turn against her.

We should all consider how popular culture intersects with mental health and illness and reflect on whether we are consuming or participating in social media in a way that is further stigmatizing mental illness.

Copyright 2024 Azadeh Aalai