The stigma of seeking care and depression
Section snippets
Sample
Subjects for this study were adults recruited from waiting rooms of two healthcare facilities. One was a suburban primary care office and the other was an urban adult health clinic. Participants were patients and companions of patients waiting to be seen. The goal was to obtain a sample of both men and women that was diverse in age and race. A total of 134 individuals were asked to participate in the study. About 91% (122) agreed and completed the questionnaires. Accounting for missing data and
Results
Most respondents were female (68%). They were between the ages of 18 and 80 with a mean age was 45 (SD = 15). Subjects identified themselves as Caucasian (84%), black (15%), and American Indian/Alaskan Native (<1%). Most respondents were married/cohabitating (57%), followed by single (23%), divorced (18%), and widowed (2%). More than 93% of the sample had completed high school. The majority had finished at least some secondary schooling, almost 20% had completed associate degrees, 21%
Discussion
It was hypothesized that people who held negative attitudes toward a depressed individual would themselves reject seeking professional psychological help should they perceive the need. The reverse would also hold true, that is, positive attitudes toward an individual with depression would increase the probability of endorsing the seeking of professional psychological help for themselves should they become depressed.
Attitudes were measured individually based on specific stigmatizing
Limitations
Individuals who declined to participate in the study were predominantly male, blue-collar, and middle-aged. In couples, people tended to respond in kind-if one person declined to participate, then so did the other. Clearly understanding stigmatizing and care-seeking attitudes from these nonrespondents is as valuable as the information gained from those who agreed to participate.
There were insufficient numbers of non-Caucasians to provide an accurate representation of stigmatizing and
Implications
Major depression is a mental illness that almost everyone is touched by and knows about. Still, depression is considered to be a stigmatizing condition, only less stigmatized than schizophrenia and alcohol/substance abuse (National Opinion Research Center, 1996). People do not feel neutrally about depression, and often distance themselves from people with depression and the possibility that they themselves need help. The decision to seek help for depression is influenced by a variety of
Conclusion
Much of the research regarding the stigma for mental illness is focused on the most vulnerable populations, especially those who have schizophrenia. These individuals are subject to a wide-range of stigmatizing attributions, and issues of care-seeking that are complicated by impaired thought processes and objectionable side effects from medications. Although society does not hold stigmatizing attributions for depression to the same degree as it does schizophrenia, there is still the perception
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Stigma of persons with disabilities in South Africa: Uncovering pathways from discrimination to depression and low self-esteem
2020, Social Science and MedicineCitation Excerpt :This study employs the definition of stigma proposed by Link and Phelan (2001), which describes stigma as the relationship between negative attitudes or prejudice resulting from negative stereotypes of society fueled by cultural beliefs towards a discriminated group. Public stigma, prejudice and discrimination voiced and practiced by the general population (Corrigan 2004) have been shown to result in social exclusion by precluding social interaction (Buljevac et al., 2012; Meininger 2010; Reidpath et al., 2005) and access to treatment (Halter 2004). Furthermore, it contributes to negative health outcomes for members of stigmatized groups (Evans-Lacko et al., 2012; Hatzenbuehler et al., 2014; Lukachko et al., 2014; Miller et al., 2011).
Primary care patient beliefs and help-seeking preferences regarding depression in China
2018, Psychiatry ResearchCitation Excerpt :To date studies focusing on attitudes towards mental illnesses have shown that stigma is associated with decreased quality of life (Alonso et al., 2009), greater depression severity (Pyne et al., 2004; Sirey et al., 2001), increased number of unmet mental healthcare needs (Roeloffs et al., 2003), reduced medication adherence (Sirey et al., 2001), more negative attitudes towards seeking a treatment (Conner et al., 2010) and lower treatment compliance (Fung et al., 2007). In addition, negative attitudes or beliefs would hinder effective help-seeking for depression (Halter, 2004; Vega et al., 2010). However, patients with more knowledge about antidepressant medication and counseling are more likely to seek treatments (Dwight-Johnson et al., 2000).
Exploring the relationships among personality traits, burnout dimensions and stigma in a sample of mental health professionals
2018, Psychiatry ResearchCitation Excerpt :The demographic form included the following items: age, gender, years of education, civil status, profession, years of work experience in general, years of work experience in the CMHS, and main place of employment within the CMHS (inpatient unit, outpatient unit or rehabilitation unit). The AQ-27 (Corrigan et al., 2002, 2003) was developed by Corrigan based on the Attribution Theory (Weiner, 1995) and the work of Reisenzein (1986), and has been widely used in stigma research (Brown, 2010; Halter, 2004; Hudes, 2007; Kanter et al., 2008; Law et al., 2009). An Italian version of the AQ-27 has recently been validated (Pingani et al., 2012).
Health Care Professionals Attitudes Towards Mental Illness: Observational Study Performed at a Public Health Facility in Northern Italy
2018, Archives of Psychiatric NursingCitation Excerpt :Indeed, Sartorius (2008) and Weiss et al. (2006) claim that individuals with mental illness are often denied reasonable employment and accommodation by prejudiced and discriminating employers and landlords. Moreover, stigma may lead to “self-stigma” in individuals with mental illness, a condition wherefore interiorised stigma triggers diminished self-esteem (Corrigan, 2007; Halter, 2004). As of 1975, World Health Organisation (WHO) and Council of Europe Resolutions recognize the importance of promoting Mental Healthcare as well as the dangerous links between mental illness and social marginalisation (WHO, 2005).
Brief battery for measurement of stigmatizing versus affirming attitudes about mental illness
2014, Psychiatry ResearchCitation Excerpt :We explain our rationale for short forms under each scale. Public stigma was assessed using a short version of the 27-item Attribution Questionnaire (AQ-27) which has been used widely in stigma research (Halter, 2004; Hudes, 2007; Bastos-Turner, 2007; George-Concepcion, 2008; Kanter et al., 2008; Law et al., 2009; Brown, 2010). The AQ-27 comprises three items for each of the nine factors that emerged from path analyses of responsibility and dangerousness.