Young Jamaicans' attitudes toward mental illness: Experimental and demographic factors associated with social distance and stigmatizing opinions

Two large‐scale studies assessed the nature and correlates of young Jamaicans' attitudes toward mental illness. In study 1, students viewed a videotaped job interview for a teacher whose history was manipulated to include a history of mental illness, or not. Students desired significantly less social distance (i.e., more contact) with the “normal” confederate, followed by those with a mental illness history. The putative cause of the mental illness (biomedical vs. psychosocial) made no difference. Study 2, a survey study, revealed the presence of negative attitudes toward people with mental illness and several demographic (age, gender, social class, and rural vs. urban location) differences. Implications of the results for community public health, education, and stigma‐reduction programs, as well as a comparison with research on stigma and attitudes toward mental illness in American culture, are discussed. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.