Knowledge, attitudes and behaviors associated with mental illness among the working population in Hong Kong: a cross-sectional telephone survey

ABSTRACT

Mental health-related issues such as stress and depressive symptoms are common in the workplace and costly to both employees and employers. Stigma against mental illness limits one’s help-seeking attitudes and behavior, thereby leading to social isolation and deteriorating performance in the workplace. This study aimed at examining what aspects of knowledge, attitude and previous contacts with people with mental illness influence working adults’ intention to have future contact with people (e.g., to work with, to live nearby) with mental illness. A total of 1031 employees across eight industries were telephone-interviewed. Descriptive analysis and hierarchical logistic regression were performed. The patterns of knowledge, attitude and behaviors were similar across industries. Higher education and lower income level were associated with higher intention to have contact with people with mental illness. Previous contacts were significant predictors of intention of future contacts. The attitude that people with mental health problems are less reliable was significantly associated with lower intention, and the knowledge that people with severe mental health problems can fully recover was significantly associated with higher intended contacts with people with mental illness. The implication of the findings and the cultural and contextual influences are discussed.

KEYWORDS:

• non-Western culture
• stigma
• workplace
• industries

Acknowledgements

We acknowledge the contribution of the participants who enabled this research to be undertaken. We also acknowledge the contributions of Dr. Alice Wong, Ms. Cecilia Chiu and Mr. Nathaniel Lam, who contributed to the success of the study. We are particularly indebted and thankful to the research team led by Professor Graham Thornicroft for allowing us to translate and use their measurement scales.

Disclosure statement

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.

Notes on contributors

Dr. Shimin Zhu is an assistant professor at Department of Applied Social Sciences at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. She obtained her Ph.D. from The University of Hong Kong (HKU). Shimin has major research interests in positive youth development and in mental health.

Dr. Samson Tse is a professor of mental health at Department of Social Work and Social Administration, HKU. His research interests include bipolar disorder, vocational (re-)integration and recovery-orientated interventions. Before relocating to Hong Kong, Samson taught in Dunedin and Auckland, New Zealand, for over 20 years.

Miss Jessica Tang is a doctoral candidate at the Faculty of Social Sciences, HKU. Jessica is a Social Worker specialized in mental health and family. She obtained her Master Degree in Social Work from HKU, Hong Kong.

Dr. Paul W.C. Wong is an assistant professor at the Department of Social Work and Social Administration, HKU. His research interests include suicide prevention, youth social withdrawn behavior and human-animal bonds. Paul obtained his clinical psychology doctoral degree from Bond University, Australia.

ORCiD

Shimin Zhu http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3428-0234

Samson Tse http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9003-1086

Jessica Tang http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0318-8216

Paul Wong http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3388-6285

Additional information

Funding

This research received funding from a non-profit organization: Joyful Mental Health Foundation, Joyful 10th Anniversary Research Project, Hong Kong in 2014 [grant number].