scholarly journals Testing the mixed-blessings model: What is the role of essentialism for stigmatizing attitudes towards schizophrenia?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Dittrich ◽  
Kristina Dernbach ◽  
Sven Speerforck ◽  
Stephanie Schindler ◽  
Jan A. Häusser ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Distance ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Causal Models ◽  
Psychological Effects ◽  
Causal Beliefs ◽  
Online Experiment ◽  
Manipulation Check ◽  
Stigmatizing Attitudes

AbstractIt is well established that emphasizing a biogenetic etiology of mental health problems in anti-stigma interventions inadvertently increases potentially stigmatizing attitudes. The “mixed-blessings” model suggests that biogenetic explanations and greater stigma are linked by essentialism. The present study tests this hypothesis experimentally. In this online experiment, 367 subjects read either a biogenetic or a psychosocial explanation for the etiology of schizophrenia, followed by a vignette describing an individual who has schizophrenia. Subsequently, we measured (a) causal beliefs on the etiology of schizophrenia (as a manipulation check), (b) the degree of essentialist beliefs (mediator), (c) the extent to which subjects subscribed to assumptions of dangerousness, (d) prognostic pessimism, and (e) desire for social distance. Subjects reported a stronger agreement with the etiology they had been presented. Against our expectations, this did not result in higher levels of stigmatizing attitudes in the biogenetic vignette group. Correspondingly, mediation through essentialism could not be tested. In the psychosocial vignette group, biogenetic causal beliefs were associated with a stronger desire for social distance. Essentialist thinking fully mediated this effect. The evidence we found for the assumptions of the mixed-blessings extended to the psychosocial vignette group only. We explain this by the subjects’ different readiness to subscribe to biogenetic and psychosocial causal beliefs. We argue that the same levels of essentialism between the experimental groups contributed to the equal levels of stigmatizing attitudes. This underlines the fundamental importance of essentialism in stigma, going beyond a role in the psychological effects of biogenetic causal models.

scholarly journals What Is the Role of Resilience and Coping Strategies on the Mental Health of the General Population during the COVID-19 Pandemic? Results from the Italian Multicentric COMET Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 1231
Author(s):  
Gaia Sampogna ◽  
Valeria Del Del Vecchio ◽  
Vincenzo Giallonardo ◽  
Mario Luciano ◽  
Umberto Albert ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
General Population ◽  
Coping Strategies ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Poor Mental Health ◽  
Adaptive Coping ◽  
Current Increase ◽  
Stress Symptoms ◽  
Low Levels

The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health are now well documented, however, few studies have been focused on the role of coping strategies and resilience in counterbalancing these detrimental effects. Data are derived from the COvid Mental hEalth Trial (COMET), a national multicentric trial carried out in the Italian general population. The final sample consisted of 20,720 participants, 53.1% (n = 11,000) of the sample reported low levels of resilience. Adaptive coping strategies and resilience levels did not have any significant protective impact on the levels of depressive, anxiety, and stress symptoms. Only self-distraction was a risk factor for poor mental health (Beta Coefficient, B = 0.1, 95% Confidence Interval, CI: 0.003 to 0.267 for stress symptoms; B = 0.2; 95% CI: 0.077 to 0.324 for anxiety symptoms and B = 0.2, 95% CI: 0.105 to 0.382 for depressive symptoms). High levels of resilience were predicted by adaptive coping strategies, such as acceptance (B = 1.8, CI 95% = 1.4–2.7). Exposure to the different weeks of lockdown, being infected by COVID-19, and being a healthcare professional did not influence the levels of resilience. Our findings should be carefully considered, since the low levels of resilience may represent the missing link between the pandemic and the current increase in mental health problems.

scholarly journals Pupils’ Use of Social Media and Its Relation to Mental Health from a School Personnel Perspective: A Preliminary Qualitative Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (17) ◽  
pp. 9163
Author(s):  
Gunnhild Johnsen Hjetland ◽  
Viktor Schønning ◽  
Bodil Elisabeth Valstad Aasan ◽  
Randi Træland Hella ◽  
Jens Christoffer Skogen
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
School Personnel ◽  
Health Issues ◽  
Focus Group Interviews ◽  
Total N ◽  
Group Interviews ◽  
Use Of Social Media

The extent of mental health problems among adolescents seems to be on the rise, and this observed trend has often been linked to a coinciding increase in social media use. The goal of the current preliminary study was to investigate how senior high school personnel experience the role of social media in relation to the mental health of their pupils. Two focus group interviews (total n = 11) were completed and analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis, resulting in 4 themes and 11 subthemes. The results illustrate that school personnel experience social media as a tool for communication, but also as a potential cause of mental health issues and reduced academic performance among pupils. The participants called for schools to become better equipped to meet the opportunities and challenges of social media.

The Role of Social Media in Adolescent Loneliness and Mental Health Problems: Current Evidence and Suggestions for Future Work

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Warner Myntti ◽  
Jensen Spicer ◽  
Carol Janney ◽  
Stacey Armstrong ◽  
Sarah Domoff
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Media Use ◽  
Current Evidence ◽  
Social Media Use ◽  
The Social ◽  
Future Work ◽  
The Relationship

Adolescents are spending more time interacting with peers online than in person, evidencing the need to examine this shift’s implications for adolescent loneliness and mental health. The current review examines research documenting an association between social media use and mental health, and highlights several specific areas that should be further explored as mechanisms within this relationship. Overall, it appears that frequency of social media use, the kind of social media use, the social environment, the platform used, and the potential for adverse events are especially important in understanding the relationship between social media use and adolescent mental health.

Early detection of risk-taking, self-harming, and suicidal behaviour

2021 ◽  
pp. 429-436
Author(s):  
Corinna Reichl ◽  
Michael Kaess
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Early Detection ◽  
Interpersonal Relationships ◽  
Risk Taking ◽  
Suicidal Behaviour ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Developmental Trajectories ◽  
Health Problems ◽  
Risk Markers

This text outlines the role of risk-taking and self-harming behaviours in the development and detection of suicidal behaviour and mental health problems among adolescents. Risk-taking and self-harming behaviours are observable symptoms for underlying problems of emotion regulation, impulse control or interpersonal relationships and are sensitive risk markers for early detection of developmental trajectories of suicidal behaviour and mental health problems. Due to their easy accessibility and their sensitive prediction of mental health problems, risk-taking and self-harming behaviours have been included into programmes screening for adolescents at risk of suicidal behaviour in the general population. The principles and findings of those screening programmes are discussed. Professional screenings are time consuming for participants and create costs for the healthcare system, thus, longitudinal studies are needed to test whether screening programmes are effective in reducing suicidal behaviour among adolescents.

The Potential Role of Resilience Education for Preventing Mental Health Problems for College Students

2013 ◽  
Vol 43 (12) ◽  
pp. 538-544 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melissa E. DeRosier ◽  
Ellen Frank ◽  
Victor Schwartz ◽  
Kevin A. Leary
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
College Students ◽  
Potential Role ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Health Problems
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