Perceived stigmatization and discrimination of people with mental illness: A survey-based study of the general population in five metropolitan cities in India

Examining the association between perceived stigma, its correlates, and restrictions in participation among persons with disabilities in Nepal: a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND

Disability stigma in low- and middle-income countries is one of the most persistent and complex barriers limiting persons with disabilities (PwDs) from enjoying their rights and opportunities. Perceived stigma among PwDs and its impact on participation restriction is rarely assessed in Nepal.

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to measure the extent of perceived stigma by PwDs, identify its relationships with specific demographic factors, and assess the impact on social participation.

METHODS

A cross-sectional survey was conducted between May and July 2022 among PwDs in Nepal, with a sample of 371. The Explanatory Model Interview Catalog (EMIC) stigma scale and P-scale suitable for people affected by stigmatized conditions were used, and the generated scores were analyzed. One-way ANOVA was performed to determine group differences for sociodemographic variables, and linear regression and correlational analysis were used to identify their association and measure the strength and direction of the relationship.

RESULTS

The mean stigma score was 16.9 (SD 13.8). 42% of respondents scored higher than the mean. The scores differed significantly by disability type, caste and ethnicity, education, occupation, and household wealth. Over 56% reported participation restriction, and 38% had severe/extreme restriction. Approximately 65% of participants with intellectual disabilities, 53% with multiple disabilities, and 48.5% of persons with severe or profound disabilities experienced severe or extreme restrictions. Perceived stigma had a positive correlation with Disability type (r = 0.17, P < 0.01) and negative correlations with Severity of disability (r= -0.15, P < 0.05), and Household wealth (r= -0.15, P < 0.01). Education was inversely associated with both stigma (r= -0.24, P < 0.01), and participation restriction (β= -9.34, P < 0.01). However, there was no association between stigma and participation restriction (β= -0.10, P > 0.05).

CONCLUSION

All participants exhibited stigma in general; however, the severity varied based on disability type, level of education, and sociocultural circumstances. A large proportion of participants reported facing a high degree of restrictions in participation; however, no association was detected between perceived stigma and participation restriction. A significant negative linear correlation was observed between education and participation restriction. Stigma reduction programs focusing on education and empowerment would be especially important for overcoming internalized stigma and increasing the participation of PwDs.

People with mental illness stigmatize mental illness less: A comparison study between a hospital-based sample of people with mental illness and a non-clinical general population sample in urban India

Evidence shows that stigma negatively influences the quality of life of persons with severe mental illness. Nonetheless, stigma towards mental illness is lower among persons with a lived experience of mental illness compared to the rest of the population. Understanding the association between stigma of mental illness and the mental status of individuals living in urban India and whether this association is moderated by demographic factors opens a new avenue for prevention of social exclusion. Persons diagnosed with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or severe unipolar depression (cases, n  =  647) were recruited from among hospital patients in New Delhi between November 2011 and June 2012 and matched with non-psychiatric urban dwellers by age, sex, and location of residence (controls, n  =  649). Propensity score matching with multivariable linear regression was used to test whether stigma towards mental illness, measured by a 13-item Stigma Questionnaire, differed between cases and controls. Cases reported significantly lower stigma scores than controls (b  =  -0.50, p < 0.0001). The strength of the association between mental illness and stigma was not affected after controlling for age, caste, sex, education, and employment status, while wealth marginally reduced the strength of the association. These findings suggest individuals with a lived experience of mental illness, in New Delhi, India, may be more tolerant towards mental illness and support the need to involve persons with lived experience in the development and implementation of health promotional campaigns and programs aimed at reducing stigma towards mental illness.

Caregivers' Burden in Patients With Bipolar Disorder and Schizophrenia and Its Relationship With Anxiety and Depression in Caregivers: A Narrative Review

Mental disorders affect a person's thinking, mood, and/or behaviour and can range in severity from minor to severe. Nearly one in five persons have a mental disease as stated by the National Institute of Mental Health. A serious mental illness called bipolar disorder causes extreme mood swings that can range from manic to depressive states. Schizophrenia is a brain condition that leads individuals to perceive reality differently. They cannot distinguish between what they are actually experiencing and what they are just imagining. Both illnesses have a variety of negative effects on the patient as well as the primary caregiver, who may be the patient's family or other relatives. In the case of a patient with mental illness, the family's role is crucial. Family members' long-term caregiving obligations may result in a caregiving burden that negatively impacts the caregivers' quality of life, career and personal relationships. Depression generally undermines carers' ability to fulfil their crucial supportive role towards their relative with a mental illness while contributing to their distress and handicap. Given the high prevalence of caregiver depression, it is critical to address this issue not just by creating therapies to treat caregiver depression once it has started, but also by preventing caregiver depression.

Correlation between depression and perceived stigma among people living with epilepsy

BACKGROUND

Epilepsy is characterized by recurrent seizures that happen in men and women of all ages. Comorbid depression is common with epilepsy due to its social stigma. This study aimed to describe the correlation between depression and perceived stigma among people living with epilepsy.

METHODS

It was a cross-sectional descriptive study conducted with 96 people with epilepsy using the convenience sampling method. Fisher's exact test was used to analyze the association between sociodemographic data, levels of depression, and perceived stigma. Pearson's correlation coefficient was used to analyze the relationship between depression and perceived stigma.

RESULTS

Twenty-three percent of respondents were found to be depressed, in that 16.7% were mildly depressed, 4.2% were moderately depressed, and 2.1% were severely depressed. Perceived stigma was found in 85.5%, of which 74% were moderately stigmatized and 11.5% were highly stigmatized. This study revealed a significant positive relationship between depression and perceived stigma (r = 0.21) at the p = 0.04 level.

CONCLUSION

It highlights the correlation between perceived stigma and depression; if the patients felt stigmatized by epilepsy, they had a higher chance of having depression. Healthcare providers need to strengthen awareness in society for stigma reduction and early recognition of comorbid depression.

Primary mental healthcare for older people in India: between stigmatization and community orientation

BACKGROUND

Questions of equitable access to primary mental healthcare (PMHC) for older persons in India have been examined mostly in terms of the coverage of services, although perceptions of mental health and old age and social norms at the community level should be considered in the shaping of PMHC approaches. The present qualitative study, therefore, examined how social perceptions and norms of mental health in old age are and should be considered in the design and implementation of primary healthcare approaches in India.

METHODS

A secondary thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders (n = 14) of PMHC in India was conducted.

RESULTS

Four key themes emerged from the analysis, in which social perceptions and norms were discussed: (1) family participation and low threshold access to mental healthcare, (2) the position of community health workers as an important pillar of old age and mental health-sensitive community-based care, (3) the role of social cohesion and traditional values in fostering a positive and supportive community environment for old age mental health, and (4) the empowerment of communities, families and older persons through mental health education.

CONCLUSIONS

PMHC, with its focus on mental health promotion, could be an important anchor for combatting negative attitudes about mental health and old age. The findings presented in this study can inform age-sensitive policies and programmes for mental health in India and could inform future research on the subject.

Awareness and Practices of a Rural Community Regarding Mental Health Problems

INTRODUCTION

Mental health is defined as "a state of well-being in which the person realizes his or her own skills, can deal with the normal stresses of life, can work effectively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community." Although mental health is essential to human survival, it is often given less attention than physical health in many parts of the world.

OBJECTIVES

The aim of this study is to evaluate the rural community's awareness regarding mental health issues and the factors that contribute to them.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A cross-sectional study was undertaken in the rural community; 350 study subjects were selected from the village of Devarayasamudra by using convenient sampling, 350 households were selected, and household-level interviews were done using the Mental Health Knowledge Schedule questionnaire. Participants aged more than 18 were included in the study, and locked households, even after two visits, were excluded from the study.

RESULTS

The median aggregate knowledge score was 31 (SD = 7.1), with the minimum and maximum values being 11 and 44 out of 45 knowledge items, respectively. The total knowledge score found that 178 (50.8%) respondents had insufficient mental health knowledge based on the percentage of the study population with a cut-off score below and above the median score. A multivariate logistic regression analysis confirmed that participants who were illiterate had 1.76 (1.15-2.26) times the chances of having insufficient knowledge compared to professionals, and this remained true even after adjusting for other variables as well.

CONCLUSION

The present study concluded that more than 50% (50.8%) of the participants had inadequate awareness of mental health and mental illness. This highlights the need to spread awareness about mental health education among the general community.

Mental health related stigma, service provision and utilization in Northern India: situational analysis

Stigma, discrimination, poor help seeking, dearth of mental health professionals, inadequate services and facilities all adversely impact the mental health treatment gap. Service utilization by the community is influenced by cultural beliefs and literacy levels. We conducted a situational analysis in light of the little information available on mental health related stigma, service provision and utilization in Haryana, a state in Northern India. This involved: (a) qualitative key informant interviews; (b) health facility records review; and (c) policy document review to understand the local context of Faridabad district in Northern India. Ethical approvals for the study were taken before the study commenced. Phone call in-depth interviews were carried out with a purposive sample of 13 participants (Mean = 38.07 years) during the COVID-19 pandemic, which included 4 community health workers, 4 people with mental illness, 5 service providers (primary health care doctors and mental health specialists). Data for health facility review was collected from local primary health and specialist facilities while key policy documents were critically analysed for service provision and stigma alleviation activities. Thematic analysis was used to analyse patterns within the interview data. We found poor awareness and knowledge about mental illnesses, belief in faith and traditional healers, scarcity of resources (medicines, trained professionals and mental health inpatient and outpatient clinics), poor access to appropriate mental health facilities, and high costs for seeking mental health care. There is a critical gap between mental health related provisions in policy documents and its implementation at primary and district level.

Palestinian Muslim College Students' Attitudes to Mental Health Treatment: A Comparative Study

This study examined the association between the degree of religiosity, combined with cultural beliefs, social stigmas, and attitudes towards mental-health treatment in two groups, who, despite having similar cultural and religious affiliation, have experienced different socio-political contexts: Palestinian Muslim college students living in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) and Israel. The study was guided by Tanhan and Young's (2021) conceptual framework. Methods: A snowball recruitment strategy was applied, using a cross-sectional survey. A total sample size was 214 students, 105 from the OPT and 109 from Israel. Results indicate that students from the OPT (n = 105) did not differ from those living in Israel (n = 109) on religiosity using the Islamic Belief scale, or Attitudes Towards Mental Health treatment (F(1, 189) = 1.07, p = 0.30). However, students from the OPT had higher confidence in mental-health professionals (M = 15.33) than their counterparts (M = 14.59), and women had higher confidence (M = 16.03) than men (M = 13.90). The reliance on traditions for Muslim students over Western mental-health approaches is a critical factor in predicting the attitudes towards students' mental problems and their chosen treatment. Sociopolitical context played a significant role in shaping attitudes toward mental-health providers.

Task sharing and stepped referral model for community mental health promotion in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC): insights from a feasibility study in India

BACKGROUND

This study is a low-cost community mental health task-sharing model driven by university students to strengthen the mental health workforce in poor resource settings. This article presents the feasibility of a stepped referral model using the community health workforce and university students. The primary feasibility objective is to detect and refer people with mental illness from the community using a task-sharing approach.

METHODS

We tested the model using a cross-sectional, one-phase door-knock survey in three geographically defined locations in Kerala, India, between May and July 2019. Students surveyed 549 residents above 18 years of age who consented to participate in the study to detect depressive symptoms and suicidality. The feasibility of the current model was evaluated based on four criteria: (a) identification and deployment of untapped human resources, (b) coordination of community health resources, (c) the acceptability of stepped referral pathways, and (d) identification of implementation challenges.

RESULTS

The mean age of the participants was 38.8, and more than 62% of the respondents were women. The results showed that 11.29%, 8.38%, and 4.91% of people reported mild, moderate, and severe levels of depression, respectively, and suicidal thoughts were found in 6.9% and suicidal ideation in 1.8%. The odds of depression were higher among females compared to males (OR: 1.64 (0.75-2.52), poor people (OR: 2.01 (1.14-2.88), and people with chronic illnesses (OR: 2.03 (1.24-2.81). The agreement of the findings with professional-administered research validated the strategy's efficiency. Twenty-seven patients with severe/extreme degrees of depression were sent for high-intensity interventions led by the mental health team, whereas 135 individuals with mild and above depression were referred for low-intensity interventions.

CONCLUSIONS

The newly recruited mental health workforce-driven screenings were acceptable and effective in detecting mental illness in the community population. We tested the care coordination systems and processes in creating referral pathways for the detected patients. Further, task-sharing stepped referral model will be tested in five panchayats (the lowest tier of local self-government) before replicating the model across India through Unnat Bharat Abhiyan (UBA) scheme.

Perceived Course of Illness on the Desire for Social Distance From People Suffering From Symptoms of Schizophrenia in India

BACKGROUND

Stigmatization of people with schizophrenia remains a highly relevant topic worldwide, particularly in low- and middle-income countries like India. It is crucial to identify the determinants of the desire for social distance as a proxy for discriminatory behavior in a socio-cultural context to indicate ways to reduce stigma. This study aims to explore whether the public perception of the perceived course of an illness concerning people with symptoms of schizophrenia has an impact on the desire for social distance.

SUBJECTS AND METHODS

Data collection took place in five cities in India. The sample (N = 447) was stratified for gender, age, and religion. Desire for social distance was sampled based on a self-reported questionnaire using unlabelled vignettes for schizophrenia. First, factor analysis was conducted to identify the main factors underlying the perception of the perceived course of the illness. Subsequently, a regression analysis was conducted to examine the impact of the perception of those prognostic factors on the desire for social distance.

RESULTS

Factor analysis revealed two independent factors of the perceived course of an illness: (1) life-long dependency on others and loss of social integration and functioning and (2) positive expectations toward treatment outcome. This second factor was significantly associated with a less desire for social distance toward persons with schizophrenia.

CONCLUSION

The desire for social distance toward people with schizophrenia reduces with the expectation of positive treatment outcomes which underlines the need to raise public mental health awareness and provide psychoeducation for affected people and their family members in India. Help-seeking behaviors can be promoted by directing those needing treatment toward locally available, affordable and credible community-based services rather than facility-based care. Strikingly, lifelong dependency and the inability to socially integrate do not increase the desire for social distance, reflecting the Indian nation's socio-relational values and insufficiency of public mental health services. This indicates the suitability of systemic therapy approaches in public mental healthcare services to support the family's involvement and family-based interventions in caregiving for mentally ill people across the lifespan.

Which symptoms of depression and anxiety are most strongly associated with happiness? A network analysis of Indian and Kenyan adolescents

BACKGROUND

Network analyses have been applied to understand the relationships between individual symptoms of depression and anxiety. However, little is known about which symptoms are most strongly associated with "positive" indicators of mental health, such as happiness. Furthermore, few studies have examined symptom networks in participants from low- and middle-income countries.

METHODS

To address these gaps, we applied network analyses in a sample of Indian adolescents (Study 1; n=1080) and replicated these analyses in a pre-registered study with Kenyan adolescents (Study 2; n=2176). Participants from both samples completed the same measures of depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, and happiness.

RESULTS

Feeling sad and feeling like a failure had the strongest (negative) associations with happiness items. These two symptoms, as well as worrying and feeling nervous, had the strongest associations with other symptoms of depression and anxiety. Symptoms of depression and anxiety formed a single cluster, which was distinct from a cluster of happiness items. Main findings were consistent across the two samples, suggesting a cross-culturally robust pattern.

LIMITATIONS

We used cross-sectional data, and we administered scales assessing a limited subset of symptoms and happiness items.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings support the idea that some symptoms of depression and anxiety are more strongly associated with happiness. These findings contribute to a body of literature emphasizing the advantages of symptom-level analyses. We discuss how efforts to understand associations between individual symptoms and "positive" mental health indicators, like happiness, could have theoretical and practical implications for clinical psychological science.

Risk factors and impact of stigma on psychiatric patients in Sohag

Background

Stigma among psychiatric patients is pervasive all over the world. Our aim in this study was to investigate risk factors for stigma related to psychiatric disorders and to demonstrate the major consequences of mental stigma for patients who experience mental illness. We conducted a cross-sectional study and applied a stigma scale to 573 patients with psychiatric disorders who attended our outpatient psychiatry clinic. Participants were divided into two groups, group I (no.262) with low stigma score and group II (no.311) with high stigma score. The two groups were compared in term of socio-demographic characteristics (age, gender, level of education, residency, marital status, employment and socioeconomic level), factors related to the psychiatric disorder (duration of illness, number of psychiatric hospital admission and diagnosis) and impact of psychiatric illness (follow-up visits, adherence to medications and suicidal thoughts or attempts).

Results

The mean age of patients with high stigma score (group II) was 29 ± 6 years. High stigma score was more common in females (53.7%), illiterate (11.9%), living in rural areas (58.2%), single (22.83%), unemployed (44.37%) and low socioeconomic class (59.49%). Patients with a high stigma score showed longer duration of psychiatric disorder (43 ± 8 months), more frequent number of psychiatric hospital admission (4.3 ± 0.5) and schizophrenia ((11.25%) and other psychotic disorders (6.49%) were common diagnoses. Patients with a high stigma score show poor adherence to medication (47.91%) and follow-up (44.05%) and a high frequency of suicidal ideation or attempt (47.91%). Significant risk factors predicting high mental stigma were level of education (explaining about 23% of the risk, P = 0.03), duration of mental illness (explaining about 25% of the risk, P = 0.019), number of hospital admissions (explaining about 22.7% of the risk, P = 0.032), diagnosis of mental illness (explaining about 27.7% of the risk, P = 0.01).

Conclusion

Mental stigma is more prevalent among young aged individuals, females, single, unemployed, living in rural areas and those with lower educational and socioeconomic level. Mental stigma has a parallel correlation with psychiatric disorder duration, number of psychiatric hospital admissions, as well as diagnosis of psychotic disorder. The stigma of mental illness from the viewpoint of the patient may lead to delaying the access to care as well as poor adherence to medications and follow-up. Anti-stigma measures can contribute to diminishing the psychiatric illness effect.

Protecting Mental Health Data Privacy in India: The Case of Data Linkage With Aadhaar

In an underprepared and under-resourced digital mental health system, the linkage of health and personal data with Aadhaar, a biometric system that provides a unique identification number to all Indian residents, poses significant privacy risks to individuals seeking mental health care. We discuss the challenges in protecting mental health data privacy due to these emerging digital health technologies.

Evaluation of burden felt by caregivers of patients with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder

BACKGROUND

It can be a difficult task to provide care to the patients living with mental health issues, especially with chronic diseases such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder where the patient loses touch with reality.

AIM

The current study was aimed to assess the of burden of care that caregivers feel while giving care to the patients of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder and to compare the difference in burden between these two conditions. The study also evaluated the factors affecting the caregiver's burden.

SETTINGS AND DESIGN

This was a cross-sectional interview-based study conducted at the psychiatry department of a tertiary care hospital in Gujarat among caregivers of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.

SUBJECTS AND METHODS

Each caregiver was given the Zarit-Burden Interview scale in vernacular language and asked to rate each statement from 0 to 4 where 0: never, 1: rarely, 2: sometimes, 3: quite frequently, and 4: nearly always. The final score was calculated and interpreted as: 0-21 - little or no burden, 41-60 - moderate to severe burden, and 61-88 - severe burden.

STATISTICAL ANALYSIS

Data of the burden score were expressed as mean and standard deviation and compared using unpaired t-test. Pearson's correlation coefficient was used for correlation between burden score and variables such as age, years of education, and duration of illness. The analysis was done using GraphPad version 3.0 and Microsoft Excel 2016.

RESULTS

A total of 210 caregivers reported the interview scale completely, of which 105 caregivers belonged to schizophrenia group and 105 were related to bipolar disorder. Average of burden score was 64.89 ± 15.7 and 59.11 ± 17.8 (maximum score: 88) in schizophrenia and bipolar group, respectively, and difference between the group was statistically significant. In both the groups, it was found that, with increase in the age of patients, caregiver's burden significantly increased.

CONCLUSION

Caregivers of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder patients feel a considerable burden of care with more burden felt by the caregivers of schizophrenia. The more vulnerable to burden are females, elderly, low-income groups, and patients in whom longer duration of care is required. The caregivers should receive an adequate support for maintaining their own mental health. they should be provided support for maintaining their mental health. Particularly, vulnerable are females, elderly, low-income groups, and longer duration of care. They should be provided with adequate support.

Digital gaming interventions: a novel paradigm in mental health? Perspectives from India

The mental health gap has been a persistent concern globally, especially in low and middle-income countries (LMIC). In an attempt to mitigate resource limitations, the psychiatric practice has been undergoing a paradigm shift into digitalized mental health interventions. One such innovation involves digital gaming utilizing the principles of 'gamification' to incorporate both the playfulness component of online gaming as well as the domain-targeted design of gaming elements. Digital gaming-based interventions have been to deliver psychotherapy, biofeedback, cognitive training and rehabilitation, as well as behavioural modification and social skills training. Research shows their utility in autism spectrum disorders, attention deficit disorders, schizophrenia, depression, anxiety disorders, post-traumatic stress, eating disorders, neurocognitive disorders and also to promote healthy aging. Though promising in scope, these interventions face pragmatic challenges for implementation in developing countries. Even though increased use of technology, internet penetration and growing digital literacy have enhanced their accessibility and feasibility, various factors like socio-cultural diversity, lack of standardization, poor infrastructural support, bandwidth issues and lack of practice can impair their use and acceptability. Keeping this in the background, this commentary critically discusses the scope, applications and challenges of digital gaming in mental healthcare delivery in one of the rapidly globalizing LMIC nations, India.

Body image, internalized stigma and enacted stigma predict psychological distress in women with breast cancer: A serial mediation model

AIMS

To investigate the roles of total stigma, enacted stigma, and internalized stigma in the prediction of psychological distress among breast cancer patients, and to evaluate the mediating effect of body image in this process.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional.

METHODS

Between Oct-2014 to May-2015, a cross-sectional study was conducted with participation of 223 patients from three cancer centres located in Tehran, Iran. The study variables were assessed using the stigma scale for chronic illnesses 8-item version (SSCI-8), body image scale (BIS), and depression anxiety stress scale (DASS-21). Structural equation modelling using MLR estimator was employed based on the two-step procedure to validate both the full measurement models and the structural models. Five models were tested to determine predictability of all stigma constructs for psychological distress, including stress, anxiety, and depression, through the mediation of body image. Three equivalent models were further examined to re-evaluate the direction of the relationships.

RESULTS

Psychological distress and body image were largely predicted by total stigma, enacted stigma, and internalized stigma. The effect of stigma on psychological distress was mediated through body image. In a serial mediation model, the significance of the pathway of enacted stigma > internalized stigma > body image > psychological distress was confirmed. The serial model in which internalized stigma precedes body image was also supported by the equivalent models.

CONCLUSION

Stigma has been identified as a major source of psychological distress among women with breast cancer. Enacted stigma not only psychologically disturbs the patients but also triggers a chain of other identity transformations (i.e. internalization of stigma and distortion of body image), their ultimate result being a full-blown psychological distress.

IMPACT

Both enacted and internalized stigma distorts breast cancer patients' perception of their body image, which in turn renders them psychologically distressed. The serial process of enacted stigma, internalized stigma, and body image plays an important role in perpetuating distress in these patients. To break this chain of psychological consequences and for interventions to have a greater impact on overall well-being of patients, the effect of enacted stigma on distress via the sequence of two mediators needs to be specifically targeted at each stage.

Stigma of mental illness and cultural factors in Pacific Rim region: a systematic review

BACKGROUND

Although cultural factors play a crucial role in experience of stigma, there is scant review on the impact and importance of culture on stigma of mental illness across Pacific Rim Region. This study aims to investigate: 1) the cultural factors related to stigmatizing beliefs about mental illness in Pacific Rim region, and 2) culture-specific measures and interventions on stigma of mental illness.

METHODS

A systematic search of papers was conducted in the MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, Web of Science, PsycINFO, Scopus, Cochrane Library and Google scholar through January 2003 to April 2019.

RESULTS

Forty-one studies in Pacific Rim region which met the inclusion criteria were included in the study. The rate of stigma of mental illness (e.g., public stigma: from 25.4 to 85.2%) was relatively high in Pacific Rim region. Culture factors (e.g., Collectivism, Confucianism, face concern and familism, religion and supernatural beliefs) contributed to people's stigmatizing behaviors and attitudes toward persons with mental illness, their relatives and mental health professionals. Certain measurements were developed and employed to assess different type of cultural factors related to stigma of mental illness.

CONCLUSIONS

Cultural factors play an important role in influencing the rate and performance of stigma of mental illness. Further research on stigma of mental illness and culture-specific interventions to reduce the stigma should be conducted in the Pacific Rim region.

Systematic review of interventions to reduce mental health stigma in India

BACKGROUND

Stigma is a barrier for help-seeking, mental health service access, and contributes to the mental health treatment gap. Because the mental health treatment gap is greatest in low- and middle-income countries, it is vital to identify effective strategies to reduce stigma in these settings. To date, there has been a lack of synthesis of findings from interventions to reduce stigma related to mental disorders within India.

METHOD

A systematic review was conducted to provide an overview of the characteristics and effectiveness of stigma reduction interventions studies in India. PubMed, Embase and PsycINFO databases were searched for literature published up to 30th June 2020.

RESULTS

From a total of 1,984 articles identified, only 9 were eligible for final inclusion, published between 1990-2020. No study was found from North, North-East, Central or East India. Most stigma-reduction interventions were multi-level, that is, using a combination of intra-personal, inter-personal and community level strategies to target changes in outcomes of individuals, environments and community groups. Three studies focused on health and stigma-related changes at the organisational/institutional level. No interventions focused on the governmental/structural level. There were only two randomised controlled trials, and two studies focused on all three stigma components of knowledge, attitudes and behaviour. Most interventions were delivered to community members. None focused on mental health professionals as intervention delivery target.

CONCLUSION

There is a need for the development of comprehensive, culturally acceptable evidence-based interventions that act at multiple levels, and involve a mixture of various stigma reducing strategies with multiple target groups.

Behavior of general population toward mentally ill persons in Digital India: Where are we?

BACKGROUND

We aimed to find out the overall reported and intended behavior of the general population of India toward mentally ill persons.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Participants were included in an online survey using a nonprobability snowball sampling technique. After taking informed consent, sociodemographic details were recorded, and the "Reported and Intended Behaviour Scale" was administered.

RESULTS

Out of 818 responses, 684 responses were eligible for study after exclusion. The mean age (standard deviation) of the study population was 31.01 (7.79) years. Maximum participants reported that they did not live (76.6%), did not work (75.7%), did not live nearby (66.4 %), or have not had a close friend (79.8%) with mental health problems. However, most individuals neither agreed nor disagreed to live (48.5%), work (38%), and live nearby (42.7%) a mentally ill person, but maximum individuals strongly agreed to continue a relationship with a friend having mental health problems (34.5%). There were 77.5% males and 32.2% healthcare workers. Regarding intended behavior, there was a significant difference between healthcare workers and persons other than these as well as between males and females. Participants who had previous interaction with the mentally ill person were more willing to interact with the same.

CONCLUSION

Most people do not intend to have stigmatized behavior toward mentally ill persons. Healthcare workers and males have less negative social reactions toward mentally ill persons in different domains of life. However, there is still a need to intensify awareness about mental health.

Stigma correlates in individuals with mental health conditions versus community members enrolled in a nationwide integrated arts-based community rehabilitation program in Israel

Two of the most prominent challenges faced by people with mental health conditions (MHCs) are experiencing stigma and personal recovery. This study focused on the analysis of baseline data from registrants for integrated arts-based groups in a nationwide psychosocial rehabilitation program in Israel. The aim of the study was to examine the possible associations between self-stigma, personal recovery and creative self-efficacy (CSE) in people with MHCs, and the associations between public stigma, desire for social distance, familiarity with mental illness and CSE in community members. Cross-sectional data were collected by online survey software in October-November 2017 from 114 people with MHCs and 117 community members who enrolled in 15 integrated arts-based groups, and 68 people with MHCs who were not enrolled in integrated groups. The main findings suggest that individuals with MHCs who reported high self-stigma also reported a low sense of personal recovery and low CSE. The CSE of those with MHCs correlated positively with their personal recovery. Among community members, high public stigma was associated with a greater desire for social distance in women, but less contact with MHCs in men. Individuals with MHCs who had previously participated in integrated arts-based groups reported greater personal recovery than those who had not. Community members reported higher CSE and public stigma than the CSE and self-stigma of individuals with MHCs. The findings help characterise both individuals with MHCs and non-clinical community members who decide to enrol in integrated groups, as well as individuals with MHCs who chose not to enrol, enabling similar community-based programs to better identify their conditions and meet their needs. Future research should examine the contribution of integrated arts-based groups to promoting recovery and reducing stigma.

Individuals with Mental Illness and Stigma Reduction: A Cross-Sectional Study in a Group of College Students

Objective: Stigma has a significant impact on the life of individuals with mental illness. The purpose of this study was to examine the association of contact with the mentally ill with stigmatizing attitudes in a group of college students. Method : A total of 287 college students participated in this study. The participants were recruited from Hormozgan University of Medical Sciences using convenience sampling and completed the research measures including the Level of Familiarity (LOF) and the Attribution questionnaires (AQ). The data were analyzed using SPSS. Results: The descriptive findings of this study showed that the participants' highest score on stigmatizing attitudes was related to pity and the least score was related to anger towards people with mental illness. Furthermore, the regression analysis results indicated that personal contact, family contact, and work contact with individuals with mental illness significantly predicted stigma reduction, while other types of contacts with the mentally ill, such as friend contact, social contact, and media contact, did not significantly predict stigma reduction. Conclusion: This study highlighted the significant role of having contact with the mentally ill in reducing stigmatizing attitudes towards them.

Stigma of Mental Illness in Germans and Turkish Immigrants in Germany: The Effect of Causal Beliefs

Background: Stigma poses an additional burden for people suffering from mental illness, one that often impairs their social participation and can prevent them from seeking adequate help. It is therefore crucial to understand how stigma develops in order to counteract it by setting up effective evidence-based anti-stigma interventions. The present study examines the effect of causal beliefs on stigmatizing behavioral intentions, namely people's desire to distance themselves from persons with mental illness. In addition, we draw cross-cultural comparisons between native Germans and Turkish immigrants to investigate the influence of culture on stigma and causal beliefs and to broaden knowledge on the biggest immigrant group in Germany and on immigrants in Western countries in general. Methods: n = 302 native Germans and n = 173 Turkish immigrants were presented either a depression or a schizophrenia vignette. Then, causal beliefs, emotional reaction and desire for social distance were assessed with questionnaires. Path analyses were carried out to investigate the influence of causal beliefs on the desire for social distance and their mediation by emotional reactions for Germans and Turkish immigrants, respectively. Results: We found an influence of causal beliefs on the desire for social distance. Emotional reactions partly mediated this relationship. Causal attribution patterns as well as the relationship between causal attributions and stigma varied across both subsamples and mental illnesses. In the German subsample, the ascription of unfavorable personal traits resulted in more stigma. In the Turkish immigrant subsample, supernatural causal beliefs increased stigma while attribution to current stress reduced stigma. Conclusion: Our study has implications for future anti-stigma interventions that intend to reduce stigmatization of mentally ill people. Targeting the ascription of unfavorable personal traits and supernatural causal attributions as well as promoting current stress as the cause for mental illness appears to be of particular importance. Also, the mediating influence of emotional responses to causal beliefs needs to be addressed. Furthermore, differential interventions across cultural groups and specific mental illnesses may be appropriate.

Stigma and discrimination in individuals with first episode psychosis; one year after first contact with psychiatric services

Stigma and discrimination in psychotic illness has not been robustly studied in those presenting with their first episode of psychosis (FEP). We prospectively examined patterns of stigma and discrimination one year after index presentation with FEP and correlates with baseline demographic, symptom burden, depression and level of functioning. We surveyed 101 subjects using the Discrimination and Stigma Scale-12 (DISC-12) and administered the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), Global Assessment of Function (GAF) and the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9).  Discrimination was experienced in 76%; being shunned by people because of mental illness, making and keeping friends and from family were most affected. Older age, female gender, marital status and a family history of mental illness were significantly associated with higher unfair treatment. Higher PANSS score at baseline, 3-month and 12-month was significantly associated with lower positive treatment, higher stopping self-scores and lower overcoming stigma scores, respectively. Higher GAF score at 12-month was associated with higher overcoming stigma scores. Lower PHQ-9 scores was significantly correlated with overcoming stigma. In conclusion, stigma and discrimination is highly prevalent among individuals with FEP; the extent is associated with specific demographic variables, symptom burden, presence of depression and level of functioning. Limitations include selection bias of subjects, potential underestimation of stigma from participants who defaulted or refused to participate and inability to establish causality.