Academic Scientific JournalsStrategies to Reduce Mental Illness Stigma
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.26881/prog.2025.17.07Keywords:
mental illness stigma, social stigma, strategies to reduce stigmaAbstract
People with mental illnesses often experience stigmatization and social labeling, understood as a negative societal attitude toward individuals or groups of people with specific characteristics. As noted by Amy C. Watson and her colleagues (2007), this can lead to a decrease in the self-esteem of individuals with mental disorders, a reduction in their sense of self-efficacy, and an exacerbation of psychopathological symptoms, increasing the risk of suicide. Reducing society’s stigmatizing attitudes toward people with mental illnesses seems to be an important issue requiring social attention. Three main strategies have been identified to reduce stigmatization: protest, which aims to counteract the dissemination of stigmatizing content; education, to replace stereotypes with reliable knowledge; and personal contact, aiming to reduce prejudice toward individuals with mental health disorders.
Among these strategies, those based on education and personal contact have proven to be the most effective in combating stigma. According to meta-analyses conducted by Patrick W. Corrigan and colleagues in 2012, both strategies have a positive impact on attitudes toward individuals with mental disorders. However, contact is more effective for adults, while education works better for adolescents. A solution that combines these approaches involves anti-stigma training conducted by individuals with mental disorders, referred to as “experts by lived experience.”
The target audience for such training should include both young people, whose minds are highly adaptable and whose beliefs are still forming, and adults, who may, due to their professional roles, interact with individuals with mental disorders or influence public opinion. Active participation in social campaigns aimed at reducing stigmatizing attitudes provides people with mental health disorders an opportunity to appreciate their own value and significance to others.
Downloads
References
Babicki M., Kotowicz K., Piotrowski P., Stramecki F., Kobyłko A., Rymaszewska J., 2018, Obszary stygmatyzacji i dyskryminacji osób chorujących psychicznie wśród respondentów internetowych w Polsce, „Psychiatria Polska”, Vol. 52, No. 1, https://doi.org/10.12740/PP/76861.
Bańbura A., Opoczyńska-Morasiewicz M., 2020, Stygmatyzacja osób chorujących psychicznie i jak jej przeciwdziałać – analiza wypowiedzi osób starszych, „Psychiatria Polska”, Vol. 54, No. 4.
Biegański P., Tudorowska M., 2016, Selected aspects of communication in the context of therapeutic contact with the patient mentally ill, „Journal of Education, Health and Sport”, Vol. 6, No. 9.
Bilewicz M., 2006, Kiedy kontakt osłabia uprzedzenia? Kategoryzacje społeczne i temporalne jako warunki skuteczności kontaktu międzygrupowego, „Psychologia Społeczna”, Vol. 2, No. 2.
Corrigan P.W., Penn D.L., 1999, Lessons from social psychology on discrediting psychiatric stigma, „American Psychologist”, Vol. 54, No. 9.
Corrigan P.W., Watson A.C., 2002, Understanding the impact of stigma on people with mental illness, „World Psychiatry”, Vol. 1, No. 1.
Corrigan P.W., Kleinlein P. (eds.), 2005, The impact of mental illness stigma, Washington, DC.
Corrigan P.W., Morris S.B., Michaels P.J., Rafacz J.D., Rüsch N., 2012, Challenging the public stigma of mental illness: A meta-analysis of outcome studies, „Psychiatric Services”, Vol. 63, No. 10.
Corrigan P.W., Druss B.G., Perlick D., 2014, The impact of mental illness stigma on seeking and participating in mental health care, „Psychological Science in the Public Interest”, Vol. 15, No. 2, https://doi.org/10.1177/1529100614531398.
Grzegorzewska I., Cierpiałkowska L., 2015, Pozytywna i negatywna adaptacja dzieci i młodzieży rodziców uzależnionych od alkoholu, „Alcoholism and Drug Addiction”, Vol. 28, No. 4.
Hajda M., Kamaradova D., Latalova K., Prasko J., Ociskova M., Mainerova B., Cinculova A., Vrbova K., Kubinek R., Tichackova A., 2015, Self-stigma, treatment adherence, and medication discontinuation in patients with bipolar disorders in remission – a cross-sectional study, „Activitas Nervosa Superior Rediviva”, Vol. 5, No. 1–2.
Hayes S.C., 2020, Umysł wyzwolony, Gdańsk.
Hayward P., Bright J.A., 2009, Stigma and mental illness: A review and critique, „Journal of Mental Health”, Vol. 6, No. 4.
Henderson C., Thornicroft G., 2009, Stigma and discrimination in mental illness: Time to Change, „The Lancet”, Vol. 373, No. 9679, https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(09)61046-1.
Link B.G., Phelan J.C., 2006, Stigma and its public health implications, „The Lancet”, Vol. 367, No. 11.
Maciaszek J., 2012, Piętno: problem stygmatyzacji i wykluczenia społecznego osób z zaburzeniami psychicznymi, „Studia Politicae Universitatis Silesiensis”, No. 9.
Miller N.S., Sheppard L.M., Colenda C.C., Magen J., 2001, Why physicians are unprepared to treat patients who have alcohol- and drug-related disorders, „Academic Medicine”, Vol. 76, No. 5.
Niewiadomska I., Kalinowski M., 2010, Skazani na wykluczenie?! Zasoby adaptacyjne osób zagrożonych marginalizacją społeczną, Lublin.
Pandya A., Bresee C., Duckworth K., Gay K., Fitzpatrick M., 2010, Perceived impact of the disclosure of a schizophrenia diagnosis, „Community Mental Health Journal”, No. 47, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10597-010-9341-1.
Pettigrew T.F., Tropp L.R., 2006, A meta-analytic test of intergroup contact theory, „Journal of Personality and Social Psychology”, Vol. 90, No. 5, https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.90.5.751.
Pinfold V., Toulmin H., Thornicroft G., Huxley P., Farmer P., Graham T., 2003, Reducing psychiatric stigma and discrimination: Evaluation of educational interventions in UK secondary schools, „British Journal of Psychiatry”, Vol. 182, No. 4.
Prizeman K., Weinstein N., McCabe C., 2023, Effects of mental health stigma on loneliness, social isolation, and relationships in young people with depression symptoms, „BMC Psychiatry”, Vol. 23, 527, https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-023-04991-7.
Rüsch N., Angermeyer M.C., Corrigan P.W., 2005, Mental illness stigma: Concepts, consequences, and initiatives to reduce stigma, „European Psychiatry”, Vol. 20, No. 8, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eurpsy.2005.04.004.
Rüsch N., Zlati A., Black G., Thornicroft G., 2014, Does the stigma of mental illness contribute to suicidality?, „British Journal of Psychiatry”, Vol. 205, No. 3.
Sayce L., 1998, Stigma, discrimination and social exclusion: what’s in a word?, „Journal of Mental Health”, Vol. 7, No. 4.
Schomerus G., Schwahn C., Holzinger A., Corrigan P.W., Grabe H.J., Carta M.G., Angermeyer M.C., 2012, Evolution of public attitudes about mental illness: a systematic review and meta-analysis, „Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica”, No. 125.
Schomerus G., Angermeyer M.C., 2015, Do attitudes towards persons with mental illness worsen during the course of life? An age-period-cohort analysis, „Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica”, Vol. 92, No. 5.
Schulze B., 2007, Stigma and mental health professionals: A review of the evidence of an intricate relationship, „International Review of Psychiatry”, Vol. 19, No. 2.
Skinner N., Roche A.M., Freeman T., McKinnon A., 2009, Health professionals’ attitudes towards AOD-related work: moving the traditional focus from education and training to organizational culture, „Drugs”, Vol. 16, No. 3.
Suwalska J., Suwalska A., Neumann-Podczaska A., Łojko D., 2017, Studenci medycyny a stygmatyzacja z powodu depresji. Część I. Stygmatyzacja pacjentów, „Psychiatria Polska”, Vol. 5, No. 3.
Świerszcz P. (red.), 2015, Lekcja Równości. Jak prowadzić zajęcia antydyskryminacyjne w szkołach, Warszawa.
Świtaj P., Grygiel P., Krzyżanowska-Zbucka J., Sonik J., Chrostek A., Jahołkowski P., Wciórka J., Anczewska M., 2019, Ocena wpływu szkoleń antydyskryminacyjnych prowadzonych przez „ekspertów przez doświadczenie” na postawy uczestników wobec osób chorujących psychicznie, „Psychiatria Polska”, Vol. 5, No. 6, https://doi.org/10.12740/PP/109818.
Świtaj P., Wciórka J., Smolarska-Świtaj J., Grygiel P., 2009, Extent and predictors of stigma experienced by patients with schizophrenia, „European Psychiatry”, Vol. 24, No. 8.
Świtaj P., 2008, Doświadczenie piętna społecznego i dyskryminacji u pacjentów z rozpoznaniem schizofrenii, Warszawa.
Thornicroft G., Mehta N., Clement S., Evans-Lacko S., Doherty M., Rose D., Henderson C., 2016, Evidence for effective interventions to reduce mental-health-related stigma and discrimination, „The Lancet”, Vol. 387, No. 10023, https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(15)00298-6.
Trute B., Loewen A., 1989, Public attitude toward the mentally ill as a function of prior personal experience, „Social Psychiatry”, Vol. 24, No. 1.
Walsh D.A.B., Foster J.L.H., 2021, A call to Action. A Critical Review of Mental Health Related Anti-Stigma Campaigns, „Frontiers in Public Health”, No. 8.
Watson A.C., Corrigan P.W. (eds.), 2005, Challenging public stigma: A targeted approach, Washington.
Watson A.C., Corrigan P.W., Larson J.E., Sells M., 2007, Self-Stigma in People With Mental Illness, „Schizophrenia Bulletin”, Vol. 33, No. 6, https://doi.org/10.1093/schbul/sbl076.
Wojda P., 2020, Przeciwdziałanie stygmatyzacji chorych psychicznie w praktyce pielęgniarskiej, „Polish Nursing”, Vol. 3, No. 1.
Wykes T., Haro J.M., Belli S.R., Obradors-Tarragow C., Arango C., Ayuso-Mateos J.L., 2015, Mental health research priorities for Europe, „The Lancet Psychiatry”, Vol. 2, No. 11.
