Reports from the Field

In the summer of 1989, The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Program on Chronic Mental Illness ¹ approached DYG, Inc., to conduct a major research project on American attitudes toward chronic mental illness and siting housing for people with chronic mental illness in communities and neighborhoods. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation recognized that many communities have experienced resistance to all types of neighborhood sightings — the “Not In My Backyard” Phenomenon (NIMBY). The Program also wished to gain an in-depth understanding of the nature of resistance to and acceptance of housing facilities for people with chronic mental illness. The hope was that with this greater understanding, the Program would be better armed to overcome NIMBY.