The Association between Personality and Individual Differences and Stigma toward People with Mental Disorders

Abstract

Although research examining the stigma of mental disorders is burgeoning, there has been little research exploring the personality and individual differences that may be associated with mental disorders stigma. The current study examined the relation between stigma toward mental disorders and social-psychological individual difference variables (intergroup anxiety, empathic concern, perspective taking, and modern prejudice toward people with mental disorders). As well, the Big Five and Honesty-Humility personality traits were examined at factor- and facet-levels to replicate and extend previous research that has examined their relations with stigma. The social-psychological individual difference variables were significantly correlated with mental disorders stigma. More interestingly, regression models indicated that intergroup anxiety, empathic concern, and modern prejudice accounted for more variance in the prediction of stigma than Big Five factors and facets. Additionally, results indicate the utility of examining factor- and facet levels, rather than only the factor level. These results highlight the need to further examine individual characteristics and personality in stigma research. To conclude, the current findings are discussed in the context of interventions aimed at reducing the stigma of mental disorders.

Keywords:

• Big Five
• Individual differences
• Mental disorders
• Personality
• Stigma reduction

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We would like to thank Stephanie Knaak, Scott Patten, and Heather Stuart for their insightful comments on earlier versions of this manuscript.

The Mental Health Commission of Canada has embarked on an anti-stigma initiative called Opening Minds (OM) to examine the attitudes and behaviors of Canadians toward people with a mental illness. OM's goal is to scientifically evaluate the effectiveness existing antistigma programs and to build on their strengths. A key component of these programs is contact-based education, where target audiences hear personal stories from and interact with individuals who have experienced a mental illness and have recovered or are managing their illness. Additionally, OM also supports basic research that examines processes related to stigmatizing attitudes and behaviours, and their reduction.

Notes

¹All correlational analyses were repeated controlling for order of questionnaire presentation. These partial correlation analyses did not affect any conclusions of the current research. Therefore, they were not included or discussed in this article.