Enhancing mental health literacy in India to reduce stigma: the fountainhead to improve help-seeking behaviour
Enhancing mental health literacy in India to reduce stigma: the fountainhead to improve help-seeking behaviour
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DOI：
10.1108/jpmh-06-2013-0043
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发表时间：
2014-01-01
影响因子：
1.4
通讯作者：
Menon, Subhadra
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Gaiha, Shivani Mathur;Sunil, Greeshma Ann;Menon, Subhadra
目的-对精神疾病缺乏了解和耻辱是心理健康问题寻求帮助行为的压倒性障碍。本研究的目的是探讨心理健康素养和社会态度在印度社区层面需求侧支持和获得精神卫生保健的能力建设中的工具因素。设计/方法/方法-对521名15-60岁年龄段平均分布的普通人群进行了知识、态度和行为调查。这项研究包括来自印度五个邦10个区的52名受访者，这五个邦分别是安得拉邦、阿萨姆邦、德里、古吉拉特邦和北方邦。这些答复是按主题收集和分析的，考虑到这些调查结果与心理健康知识和污名构建的相关性。调查结果--普遍存在的社会文化因素，特别是污名，阻碍了获得基本心理健康信息和护理，尽管知道精神疾病是可以治疗的。有辱人格的待遇、丧失人身自由和社会排斥，即在社区一级损害人权的现象普遍存在。当遇到精神病患者时，自我报告的态度表明，受访者的行为是出于恐惧，并受到错误信息和神话的引导。现有的关于心理健康的知识主要归因于非正式网络，作为一种有待加强的潜在资源。实际意义--实现心理健康保健，包括求助行为，需要更多的知识共享、敏感化和社区参与。原创性/价值-本论文满足了研究当前心理健康素养水平和导致持续治疗差距的潜在认知的确定需要。
Purpose - Lack of understanding around mental illness and stigma are an overwhelming barrier in help-seeking behaviour for mental health concerns. The purpose of this paper is to examine mental health literacy and social attitudes as instrumental factors in building capacity of the demand-side to support and access mental health care at the community level in India.Design/methodology/approach - Knowledge, Attitude and Practice surveys were administered to 521 persons from the general population, distributed equally in the age range of 15-60 years. The study included 52 respondents per district from ten districts across five states in India, namely Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Delhi, Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh. The responses were collected and analysed thematically, keeping in mind the relevance of these findings as contributors to knowledge of mental health and to the construct of stigma.Findings - Pervasive socio-cultural factors, especially stigma inhibit access to basic mental health information and care, despite knowledge that mental illness is treatable. Degrading treatment, loss of personal liberty and social exclusion, i.e. compromised human rights at the community level are widespread. Self-reported attitudes when encountering a person with mental illness show that respondents act out of fear and are guided by misinformation and myths. Extant knowledge on mental health is attributed predominantly to informal networks, as a potential resource to be strengthened.Practical implications - Realising mental health care, including help-seeking behaviour calls for greater knowledge- sharing, sensitisation and community engagement.Originality/value - This paper fulfils an identified need to study current levels of mental health literacy and underlying perceptions that contribute to the persistent treatment gap.