Stigma toward schizophrenia: do all psychiatrists behave the same? Latent profile analysis of a national sample of psychiatrists in Brazil

Abstract

BackgroundAn important issue concerning the worldwide fight against stigma is the evaluation of psychiatrists’ beliefs and attitudes toward schizophrenia and mental illness in general. However, there is as yet no consensus on this matter in the literature, and results vary according to the stigma dimension assessed and to the cultural background of the sample. The aim of this investigation was to search for profiles of stigmatizing beliefs related to schizophrenia in a national sample of psychiatrists in Brazil.MethodsA sample of 1414 psychiatrists were recruited from among those attending the 2009 Brazilian Congress of Psychiatry. A questionnaire was applied in face-to-face interviews. The questionnaire addressed four stigma dimensions, all in reference to individuals with schizophrenia: stereotypes, restrictions, perceived prejudice and social distance. Stigma item scores were included in latent profile analyses; the resulting profiles were entered into multinomial logistic regression models with sociodemographics, in order to identify significant correlates.ResultsThree profiles were identified. The “no stigma” subjects (n = 337) characterized individuals with schizophrenia in a positive light, disagreed with restrictions, and displayed a low level of social distance. The “unobtrusive stigma” subjects (n = 471) were significantly younger and displayed the lowest level of social distance, although most of them agreed with involuntary admission and demonstrated a high level of perceived prejudice. The “great stigma” subjects (n = 606) negatively stereotyped individuals with schizophrenia, agreed with restrictions and scored the highest on the perceived prejudice and social distance dimensions. In comparison with the first two profiles, this last profile comprised a significantly larger number of individuals who were in frequent contact with a family member suffering from a psychiatric disorder, as well as comprising more individuals who had no such family member.ConclusionsOur study not only provides additional data related to an under-researched area but also reveals that psychiatrists are a heterogeneous group regarding stigma toward schizophrenia. The presence of different stigma profiles should be evaluated in further studies; this could enable anti-stigma initiatives to be specifically designed to effectively target the stigmatizing group.

Patterns of stigma toward schizophrenia among the general population: A latent profile analysis

“…Furthermore, stigma studies assessing the general population's opinions and attitudes have regularly addressed these populations in total. While a previous study from our group found diverse patterns of stigmatizing beliefs among psychiatrists (Loch et al, 2013), to the best of our knowledge, this sort of work has never been conducted for a general population sample. We assume that populations do not act as homogenous as the mean figures suggest.…”

Perspectives of mental healthcare providers on pathways to improved employment for persons with mental disorders in two lower middle-income countries

“…The stigma borne by the family and other individuals deprives persons with mental disorders of the health care they deserve; and, sadly, the actions of certain healthcare workers may also stigmatize them further. Stigma and discrimination thrive on cultural bias and ignorance and constitute a limitation to work opportunities for persons with mental disorders [3,31,45]. Studies have previously documented the interplay between poverty and mental health [41,46].…”

“…The funding for mental health care is less than 1% and 4% of the total health budget in Kenya and Nigeria respectively [28,29]. In addition to the challenges in the health system, studies suggest that health professionals may have a negative attitude towards persons with mental illness [8,30,31], while also having an important part to play in their employment [8,11,[30][31][32].…”

Ganho de Conhecimento no Internato Médico em Psiquiatria Não Reduz Estigmatização dos Transtornos Mentais

“…1. Questionário para avaliação de estigmatização de pacientes portadores de esquizofrenia, desenvolvido por Loch et al 10 . O instrumento contém duas partes, descritas a seguir:…”