An online intervention using information on the mental health-mental illness continuum to reduce stigma

Schomerus, Georg; Angermeyer, Matthias C.; Baumeister, Sebastian E.; Stolzenburg, Susanne; Link, Bruce G.; Phelan, Jo C.

doi:10.1016/j.eurpsy.2015.11.006

Cited by 92 publications

(117 citation statements)

References 34 publications

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“…For example, these findings indicate that difficulties of a "psychological or mental" nature can elicit stigma already at the level of early symptoms, rather than diagnosable illnesses. Consequently, educational efforts and anti-stigma strategies could aim to place emotional and behavioral difficulties along a continuum-perspective of mental health and wellbeing (Schomerus et al, 2016). This could support mental health promotion and prevention efforts through facilitating an understanding of symptoms and issues preceding diagnosable mental health difficulties, and what could constitute appropriate support prior to the need to access specialist services.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Conditional Disclosure on Pathways to Care: Coping Preferences of Young People at Risk of Psychosis

et al. 2016

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The interrelationship between stigma and help-seeking is under-researched amongst children and adolescents. This study explored stigma in relation to pathways to care amongst young people putatively in an early stage of increased risk of developing psychotic disorders. 'Pathways to care' was defined as help-seeking and support from informal and formal resources, and increased risk was determined though the presence of persistent psychotic-like experiences and internalizing/externalizing psychopathology.Twenty-nine qualitative interviews were analyzed using thematic analysis. We defined the super-ordinate theme in these data as "conditional disclosure"; a concept reflecting the rules and prerequisites that influenced how/whether participants sought help. Through parallels between these findings and established stigma theory, we examined how these conditions could be interpreted as influenced by stigma. Our findings demonstrate the influence of stigma on young people's perceptions of a range of preclinical symptoms, and on how they seek support for these symptoms. 3Mental health problems are estimated to affect around one in ten children and adolescents (Polanczyk, Salum, Sugaya, Caye, & Rohde, 2015). These early difficulties can develop into longstanding issues; indeed, the origins of most adult mental disorders can be tracked back to early life, with onset for around half of lifetime cases occurring before the age of fifteen years, and three-quarters by the midtwenties (Kessler et al., 2007). Early difficulties are also associated with disrupted social functioning, compromised educational attainment, and negative impacts on, for example, adulthood relationships and marriage stability, parenting, physical health, and socio-economic outcomes (A. Goodman, Joyce, & Smith, 2011;Riglin, Petrides, Frederickson, & Rice, 2014). These early difficulties remain untreated for many, and this under-treatment of mental disorders amongst children and adolescents is recognized as a public health concern around the world (Polanczyk et al., 2015). For example, in Great Britain, only 24% of children aged 5-16 years with a diagnosable mental disorder had received treatment from specialist mental health services within the previous year (Green, McGinnity, Meltzer, Ford, & Goodman, 2005).An improved understanding of the mechanisms, stages and patterns underlying young people's helpseeking and service use, and the potential barriers to these processes, could inform strategies aiming to reduce this treatment gap.One potential barrier to receiving care is mental-health related stigma. Stigma has been defined as the situation of a person disqualified from social acceptance due to possessing a deeply discredited attribute, which reduces the stigmatized individual from a whole and usual person to a tainted and discounted one (Goffman, 1963). This definition outlines that, in the case of mental illness, this attribute reflects a blemish on the individual character. Stigma has been conceptualized in many ways. For example, one freque...

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Conditional Disclosure on Pathways to Care: Coping Preferences of Young People at Risk of Psychosis

et al. 2016

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“…Only two other published studies have attempted to explicitly manipulate continuum beliefs. Schomerus, Angermeyer, Baumeister, Stolzenburg, Link, and Phelan (2016) asked online volunteers to read an engaging newspaperlike text summarizing a specific ostensible study supporting the continuum view, a similar text supporting a dichotomous view, or no text at all. The volunteers then read a case vignette of a woman experiencing depression or schizophrenia.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Continuum beliefs and schizophrenia stigma: Correlational and experimental evidence.

Thibodeau¹

2017

Stigma and Health

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Recent correlational research has indicated that belief in a continuum of psychiatric problems is related to decreased psychiatric stigma. These findings have generated enthusiasm to conceive antistigma programming centered on encouraging embrace of continuum beliefs. However, the extant correlational literature does little to support the prospects of manipulation of continuum beliefs. Moreover, several factors converge to suggest that an experimental manipulation of continuum beliefs cannot easily be achieved. Volunteers in an online study read a detailed description of a young man with schizophrenia and were then randomized to read either (a) a summary of research attesting to a continuum view of schizophrenia, (b) a summary of research attesting to a categorical view of schizophrenia, or (c) no additional material. Respondents also completed self-report measures of the strength of their endorsement of continuum and categorical views of schizophrenia. Consistent with published correlational findings, greater endorsement of the continuum view was related to less desire for social distance, lesser endorsement of the unpredictability stereotype, and marginally less fear. On the other hand, there was no evidence that experimental manipulation of continuum beliefs affected stigma. The current findings are discussed in the context of other recent continuum-based antistigma interventions. Additional work is needed to more fully evaluate the prospects of such an approach.

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“…First, intervention studies have nearly always manipulated continuum beliefs bearing on schizophrenia. It is not clear whether the same intervention outcomes that manifest in the context of schizophrenia would apply to other conditions (but see Schomerus et al, 2016).…”

Section: Abstract: Psychiatric Stigma; Continuum Beliefs; Depressionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Continuum belief, categorical belief, and depression stigma: Correlational evidence and outcomes of an online intervention.

Thibodeau¹

2020

Stigma and Health

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Continuum belief interventions that erode boundaries between "normal" individuals and individuals with psychiatric problems may help to reduce psychiatric stigma, but a number of questions persist. The magnitude of belief change attributable to the intervention is unclear. Moreover, most studies have executed continuum interventions to reduce stigma of schizophrenia, and all studies have examined intervention effects on only public stigma. This study utilized a large sample (n = 654) to examine effects of a continuum intervention on depression stigma-public stigma in the full sample and self-stigma among participants with a self-reported history of depression. Participants were randomly assigned to one of three intervention groups: (a) the control group, which read material that merely described depression, (b) the continuum group, which read material that attested to a continuum view of depression, or (c) the categorical group, which read material that attested to a categorical view of depression. Correlational analyses demonstrated that preintervention categorical belief positively predicted, and preintervention continuum belief negatively predicted, depression stigma. Moreover, preintervention categorical belief positively predicted, and preintervention continuum belief negatively predicted, self-stigma among participants with a self-reported history of depression. There was scant evidence that the intervention affected public stigma among participants without a history of depression and no evidence that it affected self-stigma among participants with a history of depression. These findings illuminate a number of key priorities for future research on continuum belief intervention and its prospects for stigma reduction.

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An online intervention using information on the mental health-mental illness continuum to reduce stigma

Abstract: Attitudes towards a person with mental illness can be improved by providing information on a mental health-mental illness continuum.

Cited by 92 publications

References 34 publications

Conditional Disclosure on Pathways to Care: Coping Preferences of Young People at Risk of Psychosis

Conditional Disclosure on Pathways to Care: Coping Preferences of Young People at Risk of Psychosis

Continuum beliefs and schizophrenia stigma: Correlational and experimental evidence.

Continuum belief, categorical belief, and depression stigma: Correlational evidence and outcomes of an online intervention.

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