häiriintyneitä

Häiriintyneitä is a Finnish plural form of the adjective häiriintynyt, meaning disturbed, deviant, or emotionally unsettled. In everyday language it can describe people or behavior that is perceived as disruptive or outside typical social norms. The term is frequently found in referential phrases such as häiriintyneitä lapsia (disturbed children) or häiriintyneitä käytösmalleja (disturbed behavior patterns). Because it carries a normative judgment, its use can be stigmatizing when applied to individuals rather than to specific actions or conditions.

Linguistically, häiriintynyt is derived from the noun häiriö (disturbance, disorder) and the adjectival ending -nty- plus -nyt to indicate a state. The form häiriintyneitä is the partitive plural, used when referring to an unspecified amount within a larger context, for example when describing components of a situation rather than labeling a person directly.

In professional contexts, particularly in psychology, psychiatry, or social work, more precise and neutral terminology is preferred. Clinicians typically use diagnosis-based terms or descriptors that indicate specific symptoms or disorders rather than a broad label. In media and everyday speech, häiriintynyt/ häiriintyneitä may reflect perceived behavioral or emotional disturbance but should be used with awareness of potential stigma and in fields where accuracy and person-centered language are prioritized.

See also: mental health terminology in Finnish, stigma in medical language, disorder.