Schizopore: understanding Singapore's resistance to replace the Mandarin label for schizophrenia

• Main Author: Phoon, Phui Yi
• Other Authors: Alexander Coupe
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: Nanyang Technological University 2024
• Subjects: Arts and Humanities; Schizophrenia; Semantics; Labelling theory; Speech act
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10356/174838
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Mental health diagnosis has always come under contention it subjugates the individual to stigmatization. People diagnoses with schizophrenia are associated to stereotypes such as violence and aggression. However, these stereotypes are rarely true. In an attempt to reduce stigma, efforts have been made to relabel the diagnostic term, but only a few countries in the Sinosphere have found success. In Singapore, there is no plans to change its official Mandarin translation for schizophrenia. Thus, this paper aims to posit justification for this decision by analysing the semantics of the Chinese term for schizophrenia through labelling theories and speech act theory.