Nurses' Attitudes toward Substance Misusers. II. Experiments and Studies Comparing Nurses to Other Groups

Abstract

Experimental investigations of nurses consistently indicate that a patent labeled as a substance misuser is perceived far more negatively across a range of personal attributes than an identical patient who is not so labeled. Comparative evaluations suggest that nurses are less tolerant of social drinking and drug use and are more morally condemnatory of the chemically dependent than are other health-care professionals.

Key Words:

• Nurses
• Attitudes
• Stigma
• Substance use
• Substance users