In contemporary discourse, freedom is usually presented primarily as a political or economic good. However, in psychology, freedom is also a central component of mental health. When people have control over their lives, can pursue their own ends, and securely reap the fruits of their efforts. They experience higher levels of meaning, agency, and emotional resilience. Conversely, restrictions on any of these dimensions are associated with anxiety, depression, and a fragmented sense of identity; hallmarks of deteriorating mental health. In recent years, mental health has been threatened not only by pandemics or economic crises but by social and political phenomena that undermine individual freedom like cancel culture, political persecution policies, and citizen surveillance and control. Beyond public health, these processes erode each person’s life project, generating anxiety, self censorship, and social distrust.
Imagine you live in a locked down city where you cannot leave your neighborhood without permission, your emails are monitored by an algorithm, and your paycheck is reduced by unexpected fees. How would you feel? Now envision the restrictions lifted, you jog freely in the park, speak confidently in your meeting, and dedicate your earnings to a personal project. This contrast reminds us that freedom is not an abstract concept but the concrete experience that nourishes our mental health.
Freedom as a Mental Health indicator
In his Second Treatise of Government, John Locke postulated that individuals possess natural rights to life, liberty, and property as prerequisites for peaceful coexistence. In The Wealth of Nations, Adam Smith argued that secure private property underpins not only economic growth but also individual dignity. These political rights align closely with key dimensions of mental health:
- Life: A sense of physical safety and continuity. An epidemiological study links perceived threats to one’s integrity with chronic stress and hypervigilance.
- Liberty: John Stuart Mill, in On Liberty, defended freedom of thought and action as essential to personal growth. Carl Rogers confirms, in On Becoming a Person, that autonomy supportive environments foster self-actualization and lower anxiety. When individuals can make meaningful choices, they develop resilience and a cohesive identity.
- Property: The legitimate enjoyment of one’s labor’s fruits. Abraham Maslow in A Theory of Human Motivation, placed esteem, including recognition of achievements, just above safety needs in his hierarchy.
When these three pillars are secured, people experience a coherent identity and life purpose, reducing the existential distress Viktor Frankl described in Man’s Search for Meaning. Alexis de Tocqueville observed in Democracy in America that voluntary associations based on mutual respect amplify both freedom and social cohesion. Karl Popper, in The Open Society and Its Enemies, stressed that institutions permitting peaceful dissent and pluralism foster collective resilience.
Locke rejected innate ideas and argued that freedom arises from the epistemology of experience and reflection. The mind builds simple and complex ideas, and the will of our capacity to choose among them, though rooted in our rationality, requires external conditions for expression. That practical freedom of self-determination through reason is the cornerstone of the liberal ideal and psychological autonomy.
Cancel Culture, State Surveillance and Mental Health
The COVID‑19 pandemic offers a stark demonstration of freedom’s impact on mental health. Global lockdowns restricted movement, work, and social interaction. Although aimed at physical safety, they devastated psychological well being. In the United States, the CDC reported that in 2020, 40 % of adults experienced anxiety or depression symptoms triple the pre-pandemic rate. In the U.K., the Office for National Statistics recorded a similar spike. Removing freedom of movement and choice fueled helplessness, a known trigger for depression.
From a psychological perspective, Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy places self actualization, the pinnacle of human well being, only achievable when safety, freedom, and respect are guaranteed. He described that healthy individuals satisfy basic needs and achieve psychological freedom, where their own ends drive action rather than mere environmental influence. The pandemic and restrictive policies demonstrated that blocking autonomy also blocks mental health.
Overregulation and surveillance erode mental health by undermining individual agency. Occupational licensing laws, for example, block workers from jobs, condemning them to poverty and despair, according to the Institute for Justice. Max Weber, in Economy and Society, warned of the iron cage of rational bureaucracy, which stifles creativity and exacerbates alienation. This aligns with the findings of Carl Rogers, founder of client centered therapy, that excessive external evaluation damages the fully functioning person. He insisted that psychological growth requires an environment providing unconditional positive regard and freedom to explore. In a context of cancellation, repression, or surveillance, the self retreats, along with the possibility of self actualization.
Viktor Frankl, Holocaust survivor and creator of logotherapy, taught that humans can find meaning even in suffering, provided they retain the inner freedom to choose their attitude. Without real options, even meaning becomes unattainable, as is the case in authoritarian regimes where psychiatry was used to punish dissent, generating deep trauma, ontological insecurity, and intergenerational distrust.
In France, the Global Security Law expanded surveillance of activists and journalists, drawing Amnesty International’s condemnation. These policies undermine institutional trust and promote existential insecurity, which can only be remedied by restoring legitimate spaces for dissent. Adam Smith, in The Theory of Moral Sentiments, emphasized that mutual respect and fellow feeling are the foundation of social harmony; cancel culture’s destruction of empathy and dialogue fractures social cohesion and emotional support, critical factors for well being.
Restoring Freedom as the Foundation of Mental Resilience
Freedom’s impact on mental health transcends political theory. It is a lived experience shaping our sense of identity, community, and purpose. By protecting life, liberty, and property and by respecting each individual’s life project, societies can foster resilience, creativity, and true well-being. Freedom, both in public and private spheres, must be a pillar of any comprehensive mental health strategy. When societies erect obstacles to life, liberty, or property, they risk widespread distress. Conversely, policies that restore and protect freedom serve as preventive medicine, unlocking human potential and promoting well-being. Adopting a classical liberal framework in public policy and respecting each person’s life project creates environments in which everyone has both the right and the real possibility to live according to their chosen purpose. Freedom is not merely a political ideal, it is a vital mental health indicator.
This piece solely expresses the opinion of the author and not necessarily the magazine as a whole. SpeakFreely is committed to facilitating a broad dialogue for liberty, representing a variety of opinions. Support freedom and independent journalism by donating today.
