Reducing Mental Health Stigma: A Case Study

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to evaluate a contact-based educational symposium designed to reduce mental healthrelated stigma in journalism students. Repeated surveys conducted before (n = 89) and again after the intervention (n = 53) were used to assess change. The estimated average response rate for each survey was 90%. The instrument, adapted from prior research, contained items pertaining to stereotypical content, attitudes toward social distance and feelings of social responsibility (Cronbach's alpha =.74).There was a statistically significant reduction in stigma (reflecting a 5% reduction in the aggregated scale score). A large, item-specific change was noted pertaining to attributions of dangerousness and unpredictability (reflecting a 26% improvement). The majority of students reported that the symposium had changed their views of people with a mental illness. Half of these students considered that they would change the way they would report stories involving someone with a mental illness. A potential unexpected negative side effect was that 14% fewer students reported post-test a willingness to go to a doctor if they experienced a mental illness.Though it is difficult to draw firm conclusions from an uncontrolled study, it would appear that this relatively brief, contact-based intervention changed journalism students' views of people with a mental illness. More controlled investigation is needed to rule out alternative explanations that could account for this change.

The web of silence: a qualitative case study of early intervention and support for healthcare workers with mental ill-health

“…Key ingredients for contact based education include voluntary, positive, prolonged contact with a respected peer of equal status [46,47]. Evaluation studies of contact-based education with a range of student groups have reported positive outcomes, including a significant reduction in prejudice and social intolerance [45,48]. Additional research is needed to examine how contact-based education might be implemented in a healthcare workplace however it does show promise as a strategy to address attitudinal barriers.…”

Stigma in Canada: Results from a Rapid Response Survey

“…9 Contact-based education has become one of the most promising practices in the field of anti-stigma intervention 10 and one that is central to the OM approach to stigma reduction. 11,12 However, note that interpersonal contact is typically directed toward reducing public stigma, not personal experiences of stigma. Our findings indicate that the odds of being stigmatized are similar, whether or not one has had contact with people with a mental illness.…”

Opening Minds in Canada: Targeting Change

“…Because there were no Canadian data, this initial symposium used an expert from the United States and examples from US newspapers. Although the intervention resulted in statistically significant improvements in stigma, 17 students and their professors remained skeptical that the US reporting practices applied to Canada. As a result, OM launched a large media-monitoring project.…”