An exploratory analysis of students’ perceptions of mental health in the media

ABSTRACT

Despite the prevalence of mental illness in society, the media’s portrayal of mental health fosters stigmatizing attitudes that inhibit many people from seeking treatment. This study surveyed college students enrolled in social work courses (n = 139) to learn about the relationship between mental health knowledge students gleaned from the media, their perception of media portrayals of mental illness as realistic, and the subsequent impact on student attitudes. Analysis of the data found that almost a quarter of the students surveyed reported television and film as their primary source of education about mental illness. Students who received their primary mental health education from television and film were more likely to believe they were seeing realistic portrayals of mental illness and view portrayed stereotypes of mental illness as acceptable. Implications regarding students’ stigmatizing attitudes and students’ identification of persons with mental illness are discussed.

KEYWORDS:

• Mental health stigma
• media
• students

Funding

The authors acknowledge the support of the WIU Foundation Office and the WIU Office of Sponsored Projects.

Notes

^1. For the question “Where have you learned the most about mental illness?,” 94 students selected multiple answers, making it impossible to determine from which of the choices people actually learned the most. These surveys were excluded to preserve the integrity of the overall analysis. Chi-square, Fisher’s Exact, and ANOVA statistical tests (as appropriate for the variable) were used to determine if there were differences between the participants who reported one primary source of information and those who reported multiple sources based on the demographic factors: gender, age, race/ethnicity, year in school, and interest in social work career. There was no statistical difference between the groups for any of the demographic variables.

^2. For the Other response, write-in answers included high school, work, and personal or family involvement in treatment.

Additional information

Funding

The authors acknowledge the support of the WIU Foundation Office and the WIU Office of Sponsored Projects.