Mental Health Literacy and Stigma in a Municipality in the North of Portugal: A Cross-Sectional Study

Raquel Simões de Almeida (), Maria João Trigueiro, Paula Portugal, Sara de Sousa, Vítor Simões-Silva, Filipa Campos, Maria Silva and António Marques
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Raquel Simões de Almeida: Psychosocial Rehabilitation Laboratory, Center for Rehabilitation Research, School of Health, Polytechnic of Porto, 4200-072 Porto, Portugal
Maria João Trigueiro: Psychosocial Rehabilitation Laboratory, Center for Rehabilitation Research, School of Health, Polytechnic of Porto, 4200-072 Porto, Portugal
Paula Portugal: Psychosocial Rehabilitation Laboratory, Center for Rehabilitation Research, School of Health, Polytechnic of Porto, 4200-072 Porto, Portugal
Sara de Sousa: Psychosocial Rehabilitation Laboratory, Center for Rehabilitation Research, School of Health, Polytechnic of Porto, 4200-072 Porto, Portugal
Vítor Simões-Silva: Psychosocial Rehabilitation Laboratory, Center for Rehabilitation Research, School of Health, Polytechnic of Porto, 4200-072 Porto, Portugal
Filipa Campos: Psychosocial Rehabilitation Laboratory, Center for Rehabilitation Research, School of Health, Polytechnic of Porto, 4200-072 Porto, Portugal
Maria Silva: Psychosocial Rehabilitation Laboratory, Center for Rehabilitation Research, School of Health, Polytechnic of Porto, 4200-072 Porto, Portugal
António Marques: Psychosocial Rehabilitation Laboratory, Center for Rehabilitation Research, School of Health, Polytechnic of Porto, 4200-072 Porto, Portugal

IJERPH, 2023, vol. 20, issue 4, 1-14

Abstract: Portugal has Europe’s second-highest prevalence of psychiatric illnesses, and this is the reason why mental health literacy (MHL) and stigma should be addressed. This study aimed to investigate the mental health literacy and stigma levels among different groups of people from Póvoa de Varzim, a municipality in the north of Portugal. Students, retired people, and professionals (education, social, and healthcare fields) were recruited using a convenience sample from June to November 2022. Participants’ MHL levels were evaluated using the Mental Health Promoting Knowledge Scale (MHPK), Mental Health Literacy Measure (MHLM) and Mental Health Knowledge Schedule (MAKS). Stigma levels were evaluated using Community Attitudes towards Mental Illness (CAMI) and the Reported and Intended Behaviour Scale (RIBS). A total of 928 questionnaires were filed. The respondents included 65.70% of women, a mean age of 43.63 (±26.71) years and 9.87 (±4.39) years of school education. MHL increased with age, education level and was higher in women ( p < 0.001). A higher level of MHL was seen in health professionals ( p < 0.001). Findings revealed that older people stigmatized people with mental illness more ( p < 0.001), and the female gender stigmatize less ( p < 0.001). In addition, results showed that stigma decreased with higher mental health literacy (r between 0.11 and 0.38; p < 0.001). To conclude, specific campaigns that promote mental health literacy should be tailored to specific profiles within this population to address those that have more stigma.

Keywords: mental health; mental health literacy; stigma; assessment; cross-sectional studies (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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