Danger appraisal and pathogen-avoidance mechanisms in stigma towards severe mental illness: the mediating role of affective responses

Abstract

Background Stereotypes of dangerousness are common predictors of stigmatising attitudes towards Severe Mental Illness (SMI). However less is known about pathogen avoidance mechanisms underlying stigma towards SMI, specially in samples of non-industrialised societies of Latin America and the Caribbean. The primary aim of this study was to examine pathogen-disgust sensitivity and danger appraisal mechanisms in responses of stigma towards SMI. Methods Cross-sectional design with convenience sampling. Using an online survey, volunteers at the Universidad del Norte in Colombia (N = 271) provided their sociodemographic data and completed the Three-Domain Disgust Scale (TDDS). Participants were randomised to different descriptions of someone with SMI that varied in terms of aggressiveness (with and without danger) and causes of the SMI. Then, following the attribution questionnaire (AQ-27), respondents reported affective and discriminatory responses to the person in the description. Results Increased disgust sensitivity to pathogen stimuli resulted in stronger reports of anger (β = .14; p = .03), and fear (β = 0.27; p < 0.001). The relationship between disgust sensitivity and discriminatory responses was indirectly mediated by fear towards SMI (Bootstrapped CI =—.04,—.009). Dangerousness attributions in the description of SMI predicted stronger feelings of anger (β = .23; p = 0.001) and fear (β = .40; p < .001), as well increased support for coercion-segregation of SMI (β = .34; p = 0.04), but less intentions to help (β = -.26; p = 0.003). The relationship between dangerousness and support for coercion was mediated by fear (Bootstrapped CI = .72, 1.37) and anger (Bootstrapped CI = .06, .44), whereas pity (Bootstrapped CI = .03, .38) and fear (Bootstrapped CI = -1.39, -.69) mediated responses of support for coercion-segregation of SMI. Attributions about causes and personal responsibility were not significantly linked to stigma towards SMI (p > 0.05). Conclusions Findings suggested that pathogen avoidance and danger appraisal systems interplay in the generation of discriminatory behaviour towards SMI. Anti-stigma programs and policy makers would benefit from introducing strategies that challenge stereotypes of dangerousness and unpredictability by promoting positive contact with people with SMI.

The Promotion of Mental Health and Prevention of First-Episode Psychosis: A Pilot and Feasibility Non-Randomised Clinical Trial

“…Regarding the correlations performed, we find interesting to mention the statistically significant relation between age and work experience compared with "Fear", since it was the only statistically significant negative variable, in contrast with that obtained in the study by Tooby and Cosmides [47], in which "Fear" increased proportionally as age increased. Taking into account the scarce knowledge of the sample regarding psychosis and mental disorder, that all scores of the AQ-27 subscales could be further reduced, we emphasise the importance of actively involving the healthcare and educational sectors in the needs and requests of adolescents regarding mental health [16,[48][49][50][51].…”

Promotion of Mental Health and Prevention of First-Episode Psychosis: A Pilot and Feasibility Non-Randomised Clinical Trial

“…Regarding the correlations performed, we find interesting to mention the statistically significant relation between age and work experience compared with "Fear", since it has been the only statistically significant negative variable, in contrast with that obtained in the study by Tooby and Cosmides (Tooby & Cosmides, 2015), in which "Fear" increased proportionally as age increased. Taking into account the scarce knowledge of the sample regarding psychosis and mental disorder, and that all scores of the AQ-27 subscales could be further reduced, we emphasise the importance of actively involving the healthcare and educational sectors in the needs and requests of adolescents regarding mental health (Chamorro et al, 2022;Fernandes et al, 2022;Ruiz et al, 2022;Saguem et al, 2023).…”

The stigma of homelessness as a function of mental illness comorbidity.

“…The danger appraisal hypothesis has been utilized to better understand mechanisms that create stigmatized attitudes. For example, greater levels of danger appraisal toward individuals with mental illness associated with greater levels of stigmatized attitudes toward that population (Coneo et al, 2022).…”