Mental illness recognition and beliefs about adequate treatment of a patient with schizophrenia: association with gender and perception of aggressiveness-dangerousness in a community sample of Mexico City.
BACKGROUND
In developing countries, little is known about public recognition and beliefs about treatment of severe mental disorders, both emergent key elements in reducing stigma and the gap of treatment of such patients. It has been proposed that they may be related to gender and perception of patient's aggressiveness and/or dangerousness.


OBJECTIVE
To assess mental illness recognition and beliefs about treatment of schizophrenia, and to determine their relationship with perception of patient's aggressiveness/dangerousness and gender of the perceiver in a community sample of Mexico City.


METHODS
A convenience sample of 1038 subjects responded to a questionnaire that assesses all variables after reading a vignette of a patient with paranoid schizophrenia.


RESULTS
Women were 1.88 times more likely to recognize the presence of mental illness and considered psychiatric interventions as the most adequate treatment of symptoms. In contrast, non-psychiatric interventions were more often considered by men (64.7%). Responders who recognize mental illness were more likely to perceive the patient as dangerous, which was related to the suggestion of more restrictive interventions.


CONCLUSIONS
It is necessary to direct special efforts to increase mental health literacy among men. The general public needs objective information about aggression and dangerousness in anti-stigma campaigns among developing countries similar to Mexico.
1Dirección de Investigaciones Epidemiológicas y Sociales. Instituto Nacional de Psiquiatría Ramón de la Fuente, Mexico City, Mexico.
Rebeca
R
Robles-García
Ana
A
Fresán
Carlos
C
Berlanga
Nicolás
N
Martínez
D000328:Adult; D000374:Aggression / Q000523:psychology; D001294:Attitude to Health; D003617:Dangerous Behavior; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D057220:Health Literacy; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008800:Mexico / Q000453:epidemiology; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000628:therapy*; D012563:Schizophrenia, Paranoid / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology; D012737:Sex Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires