• Fahr Andreas

• Schnitzer Anastasia

TV shows like Euphoria, Atypical, and Shameless bring mental health topics into mainstream entertainment, portraying characters with conditions such as bipolar disorder or autism spectrum disorder. Research has shown that these portrayals shape societal attitudes, influencing how we perceive and interact with people experiencing mental illness. While some representations reinforce harmful stereotypes, others challenge biases, encourage self-reflection, and promote more inclusive perspectives.

But what about those who provide care and support for those people—the family members, friends, colleagues, social workers, and therapists? How do they perceive these media portrayals? To what extent do these fictional narratives align with their real-world experiences? Where do they see opportunities for better representation? Where do they see challenges? What aspects feel accurate, and what seems misleading? Most importantly, how do they believe these portrayals shape broader public perceptions—not just of mental illness itself, but also of the people who navigate it daily?

Hence, this seminar shifts the focus to this often-overlooked perspective, exploring how caregivers and experts evaluate media representations of mental illness. Through qualitative expert interviews, we will examine the impact of fictional portrayals on professionals and loved ones of those affected. Their insights will be distilled into concrete recommendations for media creators, addressing a crucial question: How can entertainment formats depict mental health in ways that are not only compelling but also realistic, meaningful, and socially responsible?

Join us as we bridge the gap between media narratives and real-world experience, fostering a deeper understanding of how storytelling can challenge, reinforce, or reshape societal perceptions of mental health.

• You can independently develop theoretically sound knowledge on the seminar topic.
• You are able to research, understand, interpret, and critically reflect on the state of research on the topic.
• You will be able to develop a research question and a research design, implement a project empirically, and understand and evaluate existing data.
• You can present empirical findings orally in presentations and discuss them in the seminar paper.

For students outside the field, BeNeFr or mobility: The seminar requires basic knowledge of statistics and the ability or motivation to analyze empirical data.

A Reader will be made available at the beginning.

Seminar with continuous evaluation: You can no longer withdraw from enrollment after the enrollment period (see session calendar on the faculty website).

Students are assessed by:

• Presentation incl. handout (40%)
• Preparation of questionnaire/interview guide (20%)
• Conducting and transcribing approx. 4 expert interviews (without grading)
• Evaluation and presentation of initial results (40%)

Enrollment for the seminar paper must be done separately: Enroll for the seminar paper on MyUnifr under “Course Enrollment”