Abstract
Objective: This paper will raise the following issues for debate:
Is the nature of and threshold for psychiatric stigma different between developed and developing countries?
Are we able to generalise comparisons about psychiatric stigma between countries, or does it differ essentially from culture to culture?
Does mental health illiteracy or general illiteracy favour more stigma or less stigma?
What can developed countries learn from developing countries in generating effective methods of challenging psychiatric stigma?
Conclusion: Most approaches to challenging stigma associated with severe psychiatric illness and disability have been generated in developed countries without reference to lessons from developing countries, and then export, largely without modification, is often attempted to these developing countries. The Program for Psychosocial Recovery and Development in East Timor team has exemplified how sensitively delivered psychiatric interventions can be welcomed by a community long deprived of adequate services. These studies also have practical relevance to Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander and Maori communities where individuals with mental illness frequently experience ‘double-whammy’ stigmatisation and discrimination.