Magico-religious Beliefs Stigma and Help-seeking Behaviour among the Caregivers of Persons with Schizophrenia

2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 19
Author(s):  
Mrinal Basumatary ◽  
Arif Ali ◽  
Buli Nag Daimari
Keyword(s):  
Mental Illness ◽  
Help Seeking ◽  
Religious Beliefs ◽  
Faith Healer ◽  
Descriptive Research ◽  
People With Mental Illness ◽  
Help Seeking Behaviour ◽  
Family Interview ◽  
Persons With Schizophrenia ◽  
Informal Groups

Background: The cultural and traditional aspects of caregivers of people with mental illness have been seen widely, where the faith healers are the immediate source for treatment. Due to poor understanding of mental illness and stigma among caregivers, people often seek traditional help than modern medical treatment. Aim: To assess the Magico-religious beliefs, stigma and help seeking behaviour among the caregivers of persons with schizophrenia. Methods and Materials: Descriptive research design was used. Seventy caregivers of persons with schizophrenia attending the outpatient department of LGBRIMH, Tezpur, Assam were purposefully taken for the study. Socio-demographic datasheet, Family Interview Schedule (stigma section), Super Natural Attitude Questionnaire and General Help Seeking Questionnaire were administered. Results: Prevalence of the stigma was 100%. The majority (80%) of care giver's locality and community believe in Jadu Tona, 75.7% have performed puja/ritual/jhad-phook, 72.9% visited or consulted faith healer, 67.1% talk about or believe in bhoot pret, Jadu Tona (65.7%), Opari kasar (64.3%), 68.6% believed that performing puja/rituals/jhad-phook can change patient's behaviour. Majority 57.6% care giver showed high help-seeking behaviour while 42.4% showed low help-seeking behaviour. Majority of the caregivers seek help from the parents (5.47±1.20). Conclusion: Supernatural beliefs and stigma found to be common among the caregivers of persons with schizophrenia. Caregivers have higher help-seeking behaviour from informal groups than formal groups.

A Study of Patient's Perspective of Schizophrenia Using Emic Perspective

2017 ◽  
Vol 41 (S1) ◽  
pp. s249-s249
Author(s):  
D. Sanyal ◽  
D. Das
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
Help Seeking ◽  
Cultural Perspective ◽  
Faith Healer ◽  
Mental Health Specialist ◽  
Health Specialist ◽  
Help Seeking Behaviour ◽  
Competing Interest ◽  
Emic Perspective

IntroductionKnowledge about how patients perceive mental illness and how it possibly influences help seeking behaviour is important in development of proper plan for mental health reform.ObjectiveThis study planned to study disease related perception, first help seeking behaviour and stigma among schizophrenia patients admitted at a hospital.Aims(1) To know about patient's view regarding the problems; (2) attempt to predict help seeking behaviour.MethodsFifty-one patients suffering from schizophrenia according to DSM-5 and fit to be interviewed were assessed using EMIC (Explanatory Model Interview Catalogue) to get emic (insider or person's own cultural) perspective of disease related perception, help seeking behaviour and stigma.ResultsTerms used to describe their illness included “depression” (21.6%), “mental” (17.6%) “matha kharap” (9.8%). Most common perceived cause was stress (25.5%) and sorcery (23.5). Mental health specialist was visited by 27.5% Faith healer consultation was high (29.4%). Stigma score was higher with marriage related issues and social isolation. Using exhaustive CHAID analysis, it was found that patients with negative themes as disease name like “matha kharap” (loosely meaning crazy) are more likely to visit faith healers, while patients naming the condition with some medical related term like depression were more likely to visit mental health specialist.ConclusionClearly perception of patients regarding mental illness and its causation varies greatly from the way psychiatrists’ viewpoint and this perception is likely to influence help seeking behaviour. Understanding these issues is likely to enable better patient awareness and proper formulation of plans to address mental health issues.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

scholarly journals Predictors of help-seeking behaviour in people with mental health problems: a 3-year prospective community study

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Carolin M. Doll ◽  
Chantal Michel ◽  
Marlene Rosen ◽  
Naweed Osman ◽  
Benno G. Schimmelmann ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
Help Seeking ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Health Problems ◽  
Community Study ◽  
People With Mental Illness ◽  
Help Seeking Behaviour ◽  
Anticipated Stigma

Abstract Background The majority of people with mental illness do not seek help at all or only with significant delay. To reduce help-seeking barriers for people with mental illness, it is therefore important to understand factors predicting help-seeking. Thus, we prospectively examined potential predictors of help-seeking behaviour among people with mental health problems (N = 307) over 3 years. Methods Of the participants of a 3-year follow-up of a larger community study (response rate: 66.4%), data of 307 (56.6%) persons with any mental health problems (age-at-baseline: 16–40 years) entered a structural equation model of the influence of help-seeking, stigma, help-seeking attitudes, functional impairments, age and sex at baseline on subsequent help-seeking for mental health problems. Results Functional impairment at baseline was the strongest predictor of follow-up help-seeking in the model. Help-seeking at baseline was the second-strongest predictor of subsequent help-seeking, which was less likely when help-seeking for mental health problems was assumed to be embarrassing. Personal and perceived stigma, and help-seeking intentions had no direct effect on help-seeking. Conclusions With only 22.5% of persons with mental health problems seeking any help for these, there was a clear treatment gap. Functional deficits were the strongest mediator of help-seeking, indicating that help is only sought when mental health problems have become more severe. Earlier help-seeking seemed to be mostly impeded by anticipated stigma towards help-seeking for mental health problems. Thus, factors or beliefs conveying such anticipated stigma should be studied longitudinally in more detail to be able to establish low-threshold services in future.

scholarly journals Attitudes of people working in mental health non-governmental organisations in Australia: A comparison with other mental health professionals

2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 205510291876541 ◽  
Author(s):  
Grenville Rose ◽  
Courtney von Hippel ◽  
Loren Brener ◽  
Bill von Hippel
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
Health Outcomes ◽  
Mental Health Professionals ◽  
Health Professionals ◽  
Help Seeking ◽  
Positive Attitudes ◽  
People With Mental Illness ◽  
Help Seeking Behaviour ◽  
Mental Health Clients

Research suggests that stigma impacts help-seeking behaviour and health outcomes for people affected by mental illness. This study compared the attitudes of Australian non-governmental organisation support workers towards people with mental illness with those of other health professionals. Three hundred and seventy four support workers were randomly allocated to answer questions about one of the six vignettes. Results indicated that non-governmental organisation support workers held more positive attitudes towards people with mental illness than those of general practitioners, psychiatrists and psychologists measured in prior research. These results suggest that non-governmental organisations may be a more positive and comfortable entry and referral point for mental health clients.

scholarly journals Attitudes towards disclosing a mental illness: impact on quality of life and recovery

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lea Mayer ◽  
Patrick W. Corrigan ◽  
Daniela Eisheuer ◽  
Nathalie Oexle ◽  
Nicolas Rüsch
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
Help Seeking ◽  
Social Withdrawal ◽  
Social Consequences ◽  
People With Mental Illness ◽  
High Internal Consistency ◽  
Initial Support ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Purpose The decision whether to disclose a mental illness has individual and social consequences. Secrecy may protect from stigma and discrimination while disclosure can increase social support and facilitate help-seeking. Therefore, disclosure decisions are a key reaction to stigma. The first aim of this study was to test a newly developed scale to measure disclosure attitudes, the Attitudes to Disclosure Questionnaire (AtDQ). The second aim was to examine the impact of attitudes towards disclosing a mental illness on quality of life and recovery. Methods Among 100 participants with mental illness, disclosure attitudes, quality of life, recovery, benefits of disclosure, secrecy, social withdrawal, self-stigma, and depressive symptoms were assessed at weeks 0, 3 and 6. Psychometric properties of the AtDQ were analysed. Longitudinal associations between disclosure attitudes at baseline and quality of life and recovery after 6 weeks were examined in linear regressions. Results The analyses of the AtDQ indicated one-factor solutions, high acceptability, high internal consistency, and good retest reliability for the total scale and the subscales as well as high construct validity of the total scale. Results provided initial support for sensitivity to change. More positive disclosure attitudes in general and in particular regarding to family at baseline predicted better quality of life and recovery after 6 weeks. Conclusion The current study provides initial support for the AtDQ as a useful measure of disclosure attitudes. Disclosing a mental illness, especially with respect to family, may improve quality of life and recovery of people with mental illness.

scholarly journals Association between recognition and help-seeking preferences and stigma towards people with mental illness

2016 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 84-93 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Picco ◽  
E. Abdin ◽  
S. Pang ◽  
J. A. Vaingankar ◽  
A. Jeyagurunathan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
Confidence Intervals ◽  
Mental Health Professionals ◽  
Help Seeking ◽  
Categorical Variables ◽  
Perceived Stigma ◽  
Compulsive Disorder ◽  
People With Mental Illness ◽  
The Relationship

Aims.The ability to recognise a mental illness has important implications as it can aid in timely and appropriate help-seeking, and ultimately improve outcomes for people with mental illness. This study aims to explore the association between recognition and help-seeking preferences and stigmatising attitudes, for alcohol abuse, dementia, depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and schizophrenia, using a vignette-based approach.Methods.This was a population-based, cross-sectional survey conducted among Singapore Residents (n = 3006) aged 18–65 years. All respondents were asked what they think is wrong with the person in the vignette and who they should seek help from. Respondents were also administered the Personal and Perceived sub scales of the Depression Stigma Scale and the Social Distance Scale. Weighted frequencies and percentages were calculated for categorical variables. A series of multiple logistic and linear regression models were performed separately by vignette to generate odd ratios and 95% confidence intervals for the relationship between help-seeking preference, and recognition and beta coefficients and 95% confidence intervals for the relationship between stigma and recognition.Results.Correct recognition was associated with less preference to seek help from family and friends for depression and schizophrenia. Recognition was also associated with increased odds of endorsing seeking help from a psychiatric hospital for dementia, depression and schizophrenia, while there was also an increased preference to seek help from a psychologist and psychiatrist for depression. Recognition was associated with less personal and perceived stigma for OCD and less personal stigma for schizophrenia, however, increased odds of social distancing for dementia.Conclusion.The ability to correctly recognise a mental illness was associated with less preference to seek help from informal sources, whilst increased preference to seek help from mental health professionals and services and less personal and perceived stigma. These findings re-emphasise the need to improve mental health literacy and reinforce the potential benefits recognition can have to individuals and the wider community in Singapore.

Do Help-Seeking Behaviors Influence the Recovery of People With Mental Illness?

2019 ◽  
Vol 57 (12) ◽  
pp. 33-38 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher Patterson ◽  
Dana Perlman ◽  
Lorna Moxham ◽  
Shawn Burns
Keyword(s):  
Mental Illness ◽  
Help Seeking ◽  
Help Seeking Behaviors ◽  
People With Mental Illness

scholarly journals Help Seeking Behaviour of Chinese Living in Belfast, Northern Ireland

2009 ◽  
Vol 24 (S1) ◽  
pp. 1-1
Author(s):  
Y.-W. Yeung
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
Northern Ireland ◽  
Help Seeking ◽  
Psychological Problem ◽  
Mental Illness Stigma ◽  
Covering Letter ◽  
Language Difficulty ◽  
Help Seeking Behaviour ◽  
Chinese And English

Aims:British Chinese have a low uptake of mental health servcies. Poor symptom recognition, language difficulty and mental illness stigma are the key barriers to accessing services. This study aims to explore their help seeking behaviours when they experience mental illness.Methods:About 96% of Chinese in Northern Ireland worked in catering business. Questionnaires (both in Chinese and English) were sent to ninety-one addresses occupied by catering businesses in Belfast. A bilingual covering letter was enclosed to encourage recipients to ask their families and friends to return the questionnaires.Results:Twenty-four questionnaires were returned. 66.6% reported that they visited their GP within the year prior to the study. Only one person visited the GP becasue of a mental / psychological problem. All others visited their GP for their physical illness. Racism (58.3%), physical ill health (50%) and lack of social support (41.7%) were the key stressors. 21% would visit their GP if they had a mental health problem and 45.8% would contact the GP if someone they knew became mentally unwell. Poor recognition of mental illness (41.7%) and mental illness stigma (25%) were the reasons for not seeking medical advice.Conclusion:Findings revealed that the Chinese do seek help from their GP. However, little evidence suggests that the community will approach their GP when they or someone they know actually become mentally unwell. Further investigation is needed to explore diifferent ways to provide information about mental illness symptoms and mental health services for the community.

scholarly journals Magico-religious Beliefs in Schizophrenia: A study from Eastern part of Nepal

2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 150-159
Author(s):  
Nidesh Sapkota ◽  
Dhana Ratna Shakya ◽  
Baikuntha Raj Adhikari ◽  
Arun Kumar Pandey ◽  
Pramod Mohan Shyangwa
Keyword(s):  
Mental Illness ◽  
Religious Beliefs ◽  
Evil Spirit ◽  
Common Belief ◽  
Abnormal Behaviour ◽  
Faith Healer ◽  
Personal Belief ◽  
Icd 10 ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Improve Patient

Background & Objectives: Schizophrenia is one of the commonest psychiatric disorders which require immediate interventions. Magico-Religious beliefs may affect the expression of psychopathology as beliefs are entrenched into human psyche. Local and community beliefs in such phenomena appeared to be a factor in influencing the decision to seek magico-religious treatment. This study aimed (1) to determine attitude of patients and relatives with respect to magico-religious beliefs and its influence on psychopathology, and (2) to examine the relationship between psychopathology and major sociodemographic variables.Materials & Methods: All 50 consecutive cases of schizophrenia attending psychiatric services during study period were thoroughly evaluated. All the cases were diagnosed as per ICD 10 DCR criteria. The supernatural attitude questionnaire was applied.Results: Fifty cases were studied. Among them, 48% belonged to the age-group of 25 to 34 years, the majority of them were male (62%), 82% were Hindus, and 64% married. Majority of the patients had undergone magico-religious treatment (n = 35). Among the sample, 68% consulted faith healer and 42% performed religious treatment during the illness period; 60% acknowledged personal belief in sorcery, 58% in ghosts, and 52% in spirit intrusion. Among them, 20% believed there was a link between sorcery and mental illness, and 20% believe spirit could cause mental illness. Among the samples, 38% found the link between sorcery and abnormal behaviour, 38% with evil spirit, and 22% due to planetary influences. Statistically significant association was noted in the belief that rituals can improve patient behaviour and local belief in supernatural influences.Conclusion: There is a common belief in the relationship between supernatural influences and mental illness among the relatives of the patients. Such beliefs and magicoreligious treatment do occur during the course of the illness.

Suck It Up: Opinions and Attitudes about Mental Illness Stigma and Help-Seeking Behaviour of Male Varsity Football Players

2014 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 43-56 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samantha Delenardo ◽  
Jenepher Lennox Terrion
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
Help Seeking ◽  
Mental Illness Stigma ◽  
Football Players ◽  
Football Team ◽  
Health Initiatives ◽  
Help Seeking Behaviour ◽  
Elite Level ◽  
The Impact

The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand the attitudes and opinions of varsity football players toward mental health and help-seeking. The insights gained from this study may contribute to a greater understanding of how stigma functions in a competitive, elite-level football team. The authors concluded that the competitive edge required for success in elite athletics conflicts with mental health issues and illnesses. Components of the stigma process (labelling, stereotyping, separation, status loss, and discrimination), along with the impact of gender on stigma toward mental illness and help-seeking behaviours, are explored. Recommendations are made to broaden the scope of mental health initiatives for student athletes.

Recall of News Stories About Mental Illness by Australian Youth: Associations with Help-Seeking Attitudes and Stigma

2009 ◽  
Vol 43 (9) ◽  
pp. 866-872 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amy J. Morgan ◽  
Anthony F. Jorm
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
Help Seeking ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Explanatory Power ◽  
News Story ◽  
Help Seeking Attitudes ◽  
News Stories ◽  
People With Mental Illness ◽  
Willingness To Seek Help

Objective: The aim of the present study was to investigate what news stories about mental illness are recalled by Australian youth and whether these are associated with stigma and help-seeking beliefs. Method: A random sample of 3746 Australian youth aged 12–25 years were interviewed about mental health literacy in 2006. As part of the interview, they were asked whether they could recall any news stories about mental health problems during the past 12 months. Stigma was assessed, as well as willingness to seek help for a mental illness described in a vignette. Common news story themes were entered as predictors of stigma components and willingness to seek help in a series of logistic regressions. Results: Only a minority of youth could recall a news story about mental illness. The most common stories recalled were those involving crime or violence; mental health system failures; or disclosures of mental illness by prominent individuals. Recall of a disclosure by a prominent individual was associated with beliefs that people with mental illness are sick rather than weak, while recall of a story involving crime or violence was associated with greater reluctance to tell anyone about a mental health problem. There were no types of stories that predicted willingness to seek help. Conclusions: There is some evidence that recall of positive or negative news stories is associated with specific components of stigma. Overall, however, recall of news stories about mental illness added little explanatory power to differences in stigma or help-seeking intentions.

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