Research on attitudes toward mental illness held by the public, by mental health professionals and personnel, and by psychiatric patients and their families is substantial. Little attention has been given to children's attitudes toward mental illness and the mentally ill, so this exploratory-descriptive study examined the developmental trends of children's attitudes toward the mentally ill. An adaptation of the Opinions About Mental Illness Scale was given to 512 elementary school age children who were placed in Grades 2, 4, 6, and 8. It was determined that with increasing grade/age children took a less authoritarian attitude toward the mentally ill and viewed mentally ill persons as more like themselves. Children rook an increasingly parernalistic view of the mentally ill, were less likely to see mental illness as an illness like any other, perceived mental patients as less of a threat to society and needing fewer restrictions. Finally, with increasing age/grade children perceived mental illness as less likely attributable to inadequate, deprived or interpersonal experiences. Results were discussed in terms of a relatively increased “positive attitude” and the relative acceptance and rejection of the mentally ill.
