Self-stigma and attitudes about treatment in depressed patients in a hospital setting.

AIMS: Many patients have stigma about depression, which may inhibit treatment seeking. However, most previous research in this area has been conducted in outpatient samples. The current study investigated self-stigma and its relationship with treatment beliefs in depressed patients receiving psychiatric hospital treatment.

METHOD: The sample consisted of 55 hospitalized patients with depressive disorders who completed measures of self-stigma, medication beliefs, psychotherapy beliefs and depression.

RESULTS: Multiple regression analyses controlling for demographic variables demonstrated that higher depression severity was associated with increased self-stigma related to treatment and having depression. Higher self-stigma about treatment was associated with more negative beliefs about psychiatric medications, but more positive beliefs about psychotherapy. In contrast, self-stigma about depression was associated with negative beliefs about medications, but not psychotherapy.

CONCLUSIONS: Psychiatric hospital treatment, particularly in the USA, emphasizes medication treatment while de-emphasizing evidence-based psychosocial interventions. Individuals with negative views about psychiatric medications and positive views about the value of psychotherapy have higher treatment self-stigma, which may discourage them from seeking hospital treatment when needed or negatively affect their treatment response.