Knowledge and Attitude about Mental Illness of Students in a University in Southern Nigeria

Abstract

Objective: To ascertain the knowledge about mental illness and attitude of undergraduate students in a university in southern Nigeria, towards the mentally ill. Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted at a Catholic University in Nigeria over a three-month period. 215 subjects were selected randomly from the total student population of 5045. A questionnaire containing socio-demographic variables and three subscales: The Knowledge about mental illness scale, Attitude to mental illness scale, Social Distance scale was administered to each subject. The data was analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 16.0. Results: Males (62.3%), Christians (91.2%), Igbos (49.5%) and Single (93.0%) constituted the largest proportions of the subjects. A majority of the subjects supported some of the common inaccurate stereotypes about mental illness. They exhibited obvious gap in knowledge with respect to symptoms of specific mental disorder. 42.8% were not sure of the biological cause of mental illness. Even though 80% of the subjects agreed that those suffering from mental illness should be helped, 48.8% maintained that they have little in common with them. Only 33% were willing to make friends with someone with a mental illness. Conclusion: Better ways of educating the youths to dissolve deeply entrenched negative cognitions about mental illness should be given premium attention by all stakeholders, especially in Africa.

Stigmatizing attitude towards mental illness, disabilities, emotional and behavioural disorders, among healthcare students in a Tropical University College of Health Sciences

“…This finding was consistent with the result of the study of undergraduates of a Catholic University in Southern Nigeria which found that only 33% of their participants displayed fair to good attitude toward persons with mental illness and that attitudes expressed toward the social acceptance of peers with mental illness were substantially negative which in turn fuels self-stigma by the sufferers. [ 32 ] A study of a group of Indonesian students also observed negative perceptions of mental illness in majority of the participants, poor attitude toward mental illness in almost half of the participants, and significant positive correlation between knowledge and attitude toward mental illness as was demonstrated in this present study. [ 27 ] The study concluded that some healthcare students maintained negative perceptions regarding individuals with mental disorder, which resulted in doubts on how to relate with and fear of such individuals.…”

Medical student attitudes toward mental illness: a cross-sectional study from the Gaza Strip, Palestine

“…Another study from southwestern Nigeria also found signi cant stigmatizing attitudes among medical students towards individuals with mental health conditions (37). Similarly, Kihumuro (38) and Chukwujekwu (39) reported poor attitudes toward mental illness among medical students in Uganda and Nigeria, respectively. Meanwhile, a comparative study from Qatar and the United States revealed that medical students from Qatar demonstrated less positive attitudes towards mental illness than medical students from the United States who received the same curriculum (40).…”

Knowledge, attitude and perceptions of medical students towards mental health in a university in Uganda

“…Studies in some parts of sub-Saharan Africa have found that medical students and health workers have lower levels of knowledge, poor perception, and attitude towards mental illness [21,22]. This not only predisposes them to mental illness but also hinders the utilisation of mental health services available and the recognition of mental illness in the people they serve [8,[23][24][25][26][27].…”