The present study aimed to develop and validate a conceptual model linking public and internalised stigma to recovery attitudes, processes and outcomes among people with mental illness. Specifically, we sought to examine whether perceptions of public stigma (i.e., perceived stigma) would affect experiences of internalised stigma (i.e., self‐stigma) and thereby influence recovery attitudes (i.e., recovery orientation), recovery processes (i.e., service engagement) and recovery outcomes (i.e., clinical recovery and functional recovery). A total of 205 people with mental illness from Hong Kong, China, completed questionnaire measures on perceived stigma, self‐stigma, recovery orientation, service engagement, clinical recovery and functional recovery. The associations among these variables were analysed using path analyses and bootstrap analyses. Path analyses showed that perceived stigma was related to greater self‐stigma, which was, in turn, linked to lower recovery orientation and then lesser service engagement and ultimately poorer clinical recovery and functional recovery. Bootstrap analyses further demonstrated that perceived stigma had significant indirect effects on recovery orientation via self‐stigma, on service engagement via self‐stigma and recovery orientation and on clinical recovery and functional recovery via self‐stigma, recovery orientation and service engagement. Theoretically, our findings reveal how public and internalised stigma may adversely affect recovery attitudes, processes and outcomes among people with mental illness. Practically, our findings point to the vital and urgent need to develop effective interventions to mitigate stigma and self‐stigma at community and individual levels in order to reduce the deleterious impact of stigma on recovery.
Objectives
The present study aimed to investigate the impact of family support on the recovery of people with mental illness and to explore the potential mechanisms underlying this impact. Specifically, we examined whether family support would be associated with clinical recovery (as indicated by symptom severity, social functioning, and work functioning) and personal recovery (as indicated by recovery perceptions and life satisfaction) among people with mental illness. We also examined whether these associations would be mediated by self-compassion.
Method
A total of 356 people with mental illness provided cross-sectional questionnaire data on family support, self-compassion, symptom severity, social functioning, work functioning, recovery perceptions, and life satisfaction.
Results
Path analyses showed that family support was associated positively with self-compassion, which was, in turn, related to lower symptom severity, higher social functioning and work functioning, more positive perceptions of recovery, and greater life satisfaction. Sobel tests and bootstrap analyses further revealed that family support had indirect effects on symptom severity, social functioning, work functioning, recovery perceptions, and life satisfaction via self-compassion.
Conclusions
Our findings indicate that people with mental illness who receive greater support from the family are better able to have self-caring attitudes. With higher levels of self-compassion, they may have less psychopathology and better functioning. They may also have more positive experiences and perceptions of recovery and attain greater levels of life satisfaction and enjoyment.
Preregistration
This study is not preregistered.
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