Stigma and discrimination associated with mental illness and other stigmatizing conditions in China using two cultural-sensitive measures of stigma: interpersonal distance and occupational restrictiveness

Abstract

Background Reducing stigma is a perennial target of mental health advocates, but effectively addressing stigma relies on the ability to correctly understand and accurately measure culture-specific and location-specific components of stigma and discrimination. Methods We developed two culture-sensitive measures that assess the core components of stigma. The 40-item Interpersonal Distance Scale (IDS) asks respondents about their willingness to establish four different types of relationships with individuals with 10 target conditions, including five mental health-related conditions and five comparison conditions. The 40-item Occupational Restrictiveness Scale (ORS) asks respondents how suitable it is for individuals with the 10 conditions to assume four different types of occupations. The scales – which take 15 min to complete – were administered as part of a 2013 survey in Ningxia Province, China to a representative sample of 2425 adult community members. Results IDS and ORS differentiated the level of stigma between the 10 conditions. Of the total, 81% of respondents were unwilling to have interpersonal relationships with individuals with mental health-related conditions and 91% considered them unsuitable for various occupations. Substantial differences in attitudes about the five mental health-related conditions suggest that there is no community consensus about what constitutes a ‘mental illness’. Conclusions Selection of comparison conditions, types of social relationships, and types of occupations considered by the IDS and ORS make it possible to develop culture-sensitive and cohort-specific measures of interpersonal distance and occupational restrictiveness that can be used to compare the level and type of stigma associated with different conditions and to monitor changes in stigma over time.

Influence of Wearing Surgical Mask on Interpersonal Space Perception Between Mainland Chinese and Taiwanese People

“…Participants were asked to use their imagination to determine their IPS when moving the avatar toward the confederate's image in the active pattern and when moving the confederate's image toward the avatar in the passive pattern. The use of a questionnaire to collect data on IPS has been widely employed in related investigations (Hayduk, 1983;Iachini et al, 2016;Xiong et al, 2020) and our measurement was reliable (ICC = 0.82); thus, the absence of visual cues, body somatosensory information, and interactivity may explain the inconsistent results. Nevertheless, the current findings are consistent with those of Hecht et al (2019), who indicated that the approach patterns had no effect on IPS perception when participants were facing a simplified avatar.…”

“…Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the study was forced to use an online survey to collect data on IPS to avoid humanto-human transmission (Ruggiero et al, 2019;Calbi et al, 2021). The online survey was adapted from the paper-andpencil test utilized in the research of Hayduk (1983) and Xiong et al (2020). An online survey is an effective method for collecting data on IPS in different countries and is widely used in clinical and practical investigations (Iachini et al, 2016).…”

Effects of Target Variables on Interpersonal Distance Perception for Young Taiwanese during the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, an online survey was used to collect data on IPD to avoid human-to-human transmission [ 3 , 19 , 36 ]. The online survey was adapted from the paper-and-pencil test used in the studies of Hayduk [ 37 ] and Xiong et al [ 38 ]. An online survey is an effective tool for collecting data on IPD, and is widely used in clinical and practical investigations [ 14 ].…”