Mental illness: measuring worker attitudes in residential settings: the stigma factor

• Main Author: Novak, Amanda Lynn
• Other Authors: Sydney Duder (Internal/Supervisor)
• Format: Others
• Language: en
• Published: McGill University 2012
• Subjects: Social Sciences - Social Work
• Online Access: http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=110372

The stigmatization of people with mental illness is present in all facets of modern society. Many studies have shown that even mental workers trained to work with this vulnerable population held stigmatizing attitudes about mental illness and people with mental illness. This study: (1) examined if the functioning of graduates from mental health agencies was impacted by the attitudes of workers. (2) Compared the attitudes of the mental health professionals of four local agency settings to the US general population. (3) Examined the relationship between worker attitudes and stated agency policies. (4) Examined the relationship between the levels of stigma and the personal characteristics of the mental health professionals. Two standardized instruments were used: for graduates the Independent Living Skills Survey (ILSS), for workers two vignettes from the MacArthur Mental Health Module. A total of 41 workers were recruited from four mental health residential services. These workers were found to have significantly less stigmatizing attitudes about mental illness than the general public. For some items females reported less stigmatizing views than males, and university graduates had less stigmatizing views than non graduates. This suggests that hiring workers with university degrees should be considered, and providing training for workers about issues related to mental illness should be encouraged === The stigmatization of people with mental illness is present in all facets of modern society. Many studies have shown that even mental workers trained to work with this vulnerable population held stigmatizing attitudes about mental illness and people with mental illness. This study: (1) examined if the functioning of graduates from mental health agencies was impacted by the attitudes of workers. (2) Compared the attitudes of the mental health professionals of four local agency settings to the US general population. (3) Examined the relationship between worker attitudes and stated agency policies. (4) Examined the relationship between the levels of stigma and the personal characteristics of the mental health professionals. Two standardized instruments were used: for graduates the Independent Living Skills Survey (ILSS), for workers two vignettes from the MacArthur Mental Health Module. A total of 41 workers were recruited from four mental health residential services. These workers were found to have significantly less stigmatizing attitudes about mental illness than the general public. For some items females reported less stigmatizing views than males, and university graduates had less stigmatizing views than non graduates. This suggests that hiring workers with university degrees should be considered, and providing training for workers about issues related to mental illness should be encouraged