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Attitudes towards the mentally ill in Ireland

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 June 2014

Patrick Black ,
Martin Duffy ,
John Kieran ,
James Mallon  and
Bernadette M Murphy
James Mallon
Affiliation:
St. Brigids Hospital, Ardee, Co. Louth, Ireland
Bernadette M Murphy
Affiliation:
St. Lomans Hospital, Dublin 20, Ireland
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Abstract

Objective: This survey attempts to ascertain the attitude of the general public towards the mentally ill and former psychiatric patients in Ireland. Method: A random selection of 155 adults were interviewed using Likert-type scales (29 items). Results: Factor analysis revealed four main attitude dimensions: fear, lack of sympathy, personal rejection and perceived community rejection. Overall, respondents express a low level of fear and a high level of sympathy towards the mentally ill. Lack of sympathy correlated highly with older age group, lower educational level and lower socio-economic class of respondent. Respondents with higher self-reported knowledge about mental illness were less fearful and more sympathetic towards the mentally ill. Conclusions: The findings are encouraging to the development of community psychiatric services and support the usefulness of public education in the area of mental health.

Keywords

AttitudesMental illnessCommunity psychiatryEducation
Type
Original Papers
Information
Irish Journal of Psychological Medicine , Volume 10 , Issue 2 , June 1993 , pp. 75 - 79
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1993

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