Attitudes of university students towards people with mental health disorders: a survey-based study

المجلة: Discover Psychology

سنة النشر: 2024

تاريخ النشر: 2024-08-14

Iraq and Iraqi Kurdistan face significant challenges regarding mental disorders. Individuals with mental health disorders often conceal their conditions, particularly in certain cultural contexts, due to the negative attitudes they face. This study aims to explore the attitudes of university students towards individuals with mental health disorders. Methods A sample of 294 university students from five distinct colleges within a public university in the Kurdistan region of Iraq was selected to participate in an attitudinal survey. The participants were chosen using convenience sampling. The survey encompassed 34 items, which were categorized into six overarching conceptual sub-scales: benevolence, separatism, stereotyping, restrictiveness, pessimistic prediction, and stigmatization. Descriptive and inferential statistics were employed to analyze the gathered data. Results The findings indicate that the majority of participants held negative attitudes towards individuals with mental health disorder. Furthermore, the study identified statistically significant associations between socio-demographic variables and students’ attitudes across most of the subscales. Conclusion The study highlights the prevalence of negative attitudes towards individuals with mental health disorder among university students. It suggests the establishment of a psychological and guidance counseling center at the university to promote awareness about mental health disorder and provide guidance and training to mitigate its severity, similar to physical illnesses.

Knowledge and Attitudes Regarding Depression Among a Sample of Iraqi Non-Psychiatric Nurses: A Cross-Sectional Study

المجلة: SAGE Open Nursing

سنة النشر: 2024

تاريخ النشر: 2024-06-07

Nurses, comprising the largest profession in healthcare, play a significant role in the identification and management of mental health disorders in hospitals. Objectives The study assessed the knowledge and attitudes of non-psychiatric nurses and their encounters with depressive patients throughout their careers. Methods This was a cross-sectional descriptive study with 400 non-psychiatric nurses from different hospitals in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq during October and November 2022. The independent Student's t-test, one-way analysis of variance, and binary logistic regression were used to assess possible factors associated with knowledge and attitude toward depression. Results In this study, 400 non-psychiatric nurses were examined, revealing a mean age of 31.57 ± 8.59 years. Their mean scores for knowledge and attitude toward depression were 5.41 out of a maximum of 11 (standard …