Attitude toward mental illness among adolescents: A hospital-based study

Abstract

Introduction: Stigma, prejudice, and discrimination toward mental illness continue to plague the society despite multiple advances in etiology and treatment. It deprives the persons with mental illness the right to a good quality of life, social support, and also has a direct effect on treatment seeking and compliance. Objective: The main objective of this study was to assess the attitude toward mental illness among adolescents, who might be an untapped human resource in care of persons with mental illness. Methodology: A cross-sectional comparative study of 70 adolescents aged 14–18 years was done. Attitude toward mental illness of adolescents having family members with severe mental illness was compared to adolescents having family members with chronic medical illness. Purposive sampling from a tertiary health-care center was done, and the “Attitude Scale for Mental Illness questionnaire” was administered. Sociodemographic data were collected using a standard pro forma. Results: Descriptive analysis showed an overall positive attitude on separatism, benevolence, and stigma subscale and a negative attitude toward stereotyping, restrictiveness, and pessimistic prediction. No significant difference was observed in the attitudes of adolescents from both the categories. Conclusion: Adolescents can form an important bridge in reducing the stigma surrounding mental illness.