The Lesser of Two Evils: Mental Illness or Physical Illness

This study was designed to measure how several mental illnesses (specifically Bipolar Disorder, Major Depression, Schizophrenia, and Generalized Anxiety Disorder) compare to several physical illnesses (specifically Type 2 Diabetes, Heart Disease, Cystic Fibrosis, and Crohn's Disease) in terms of both controllability and blame. The participants were asked to read a series of vignettes and then answer questions regarding the degree to which the person in the vignettes is perceived as responsible for their outcome. Following this, blame was further investigated by measuring respondents' perceptions of common workplace excuses regarding symptoms of various mental and physical illnesses. The expected results of the study are that participants will rank Type 2 Diabetes, Heart Disease, Major Depression, and Generalized Anxiety Disorder higher on controllability and blame while ranking Crohn's Disease, Cystic Fibrosis, Schizophrenia, and Bipolar Disorder lower on blame and controllability. We also expect that those illnesses rated higher on controllability and blame will be rated lower in terms of perceived excusability for workplace absences.