Are people with mental illness a symbol of violence? In the public eye, mental illness and violence are always closely linked. A definitive U.S. study analyzed an entire year’s worth of TV show schedules —- including soaps, dramas and movies and found that 73% of the shows featured mentally ill people in violent images. The same study that analyzed television and print media showed that 90% of stories reported about mentally ill people featured mentally ill people in violent and homicidal images. It is highly counterfactual and discriminatory for the media to portray the mentally ill as violent. What exactly is the relationship between mental illness and violence? Research suggests that mentally ill people are no more violent or dangerous than the general population. If there is a link, it can only mean that they are more likely to be victims of violence, especially self-harm. When scaled, people with severe mental illnesses like schizophrenia have only a 0.005 percent lifetime risk of harming or killing another person, while the risk of suicide is nearly 10 percent. That is, their risk of self-harm is 2,000 times greater than their risk of harming others. Is there a link between mental illness and violence or not? Yes, there is a weak statistical association between mental illness and violence. The association is concentrated in certain patients, such as those who have had previous violent behavior but have not received any treatment, and those who are also drug or alcohol addicts. However, the association between alcoholism in general or between 15-25 year olds and violence is greater than the association between mental illness and violence. What can be done to improve this situation? The most important step is to get the patient into good treatment. An important part of this is that mental health workers must identify those at risk for violent behavior and ensure that they receive appropriate, timely and consistent help. It is also important that society as a whole understands the problem accurately.