- Amy J. Morgan, Anna M. Ross, Gayle McNaught, Rachel Green, Nicola J. Reavley
Correspondence: ajmorgan@unimelb.edu.au
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Abstract
Objectives
To examine the prevalence in Australia of stigmatising attitudes towards people with six different mental health conditions: depression, early and long-term/untreated forms of schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, borderline personality disorder and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Design
Cross-sectional population-based survey using the probability-based online panel Life in Australia. Participants responded to one of six vignettes describing a person with a mental health condition.
Setting
Australia, 11–25 November 2024.
Participants
Representative sample of 6032 adult residents of Australia.
Main Outcome Measures
Proportions of participants who agreed or strongly agreed with 13 stigmatising attitudes and proportions who were definitely or probably unwilling to interact in five different social situations with the person in the vignette.
Results
Stigmatising attitudes were generally lowest for depression and highest for long-term schizophrenia and borderline personality disorder. Beliefs about unpredictability had the highest endorsement: 61.9% (95% confidence interval [CI], 58.2%–65.5%) for long-term schizophrenia; 56.3% (95% CI, 52.5%–59.9%) for borderline personality disorder; 52.8% (95% CI, 49.0%–56.6%) for early schizophrenia; 50.7% (95% CI, 47.0%–54.4%) for bipolar disorder; 29.2% (95% CI, 25.9%–32.7%) for ADHD and 23.3% (95% CI, 20.2%–26.7%) for depression. Forcing treatment was endorsed by 25.9% (95% CI, 22.6%–29.5%) for early schizophrenia and 24.1% (95% CI, 21.0%–27.6%) for long-term schizophrenia. For all conditions, at least 20% of participants did not agree that the person in the vignette was a person of worth, with agreement ranging from 78.5% (95% CI, 75.1%–81.6%) for early schizophrenia to 67.4% (95% CI, 63.8%–70.9%) for long-term schizophrenia. There were high levels of unwillingness for the person in the vignette to marry into the family: ranging from 29.7% (95% CI, 26.4%–33.2%) for ADHD to 64.4% (95% CI, 60.7%–67.9%) for long-term schizophrenia.
Conclusions
Stigma related to mental health conditions remains prevalent in Australia and contributes to social and economic exclusion among those affected. Sustained action is needed across multiple sectors to address stigma, particularly towards conditions such as schizophrenia and borderline personality disorder, which are poorly understood within the community.