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Nurses and nursing students often hold stigmatizing attitudes toward patients with mental illness, contributing to poor health outcomes. To address this, direct contact with persons with lived experience in mental illness (i.e. consumers) has been integrated into training curricula. This has shown decreased negative attitudes and increased empathy, but gains are not typically maintained at follow-up. The purpose of this paper is to explore acceptability (i.e. feasibility, process and fidelity) and stigmatizing attitudes of nursing students after the completion of a mentor-based direct-contact curriculum to decrease stigmatizing attitudes toward persons with mental illness.

A five-week manualized contact-based mentorship program, with a mentor (i.e. consumer)–mentee (i.e. student) pairs implemented as a supplement to the clinical curriculum for 23 baccalaureate-nursing students. Feasibility (i.e. attendance), acceptability, fidelity and stigmatizing attitudes were evaluated. The Error Choice Test and the Attribution Questionnaire (AQ-9) were used to assess stigmatizing attitudes.

Feasibility was 100 percent for face-to-face meetings and participants were satisfied with the integration of the program into their curriculum, indicating high acceptability. A repeated measures ANOVA yielded significant findings for stigmatizing attitudes (F (2, 21)=6.96, p<0.02, η²=0.23). This suggests that a consumer-led mentoring program may reduce mental health stigma within student-nursing populations. The AQ-9 did not yield significant results.

This study lacked a comparison group. Future research should include a randomized controlled trial.

This study demonstrates capacity for high feasibility and acceptability for an anti-stigma curriculum in this educational context.

This paper aims to investigate the local perspectives, based on culture and beliefs about peer stigma, consequences and strategies to reduce mental health stigma among adolescents in Indonesia.

This study included 30 participants, including students, teachers, health professionals and lecturers. Two sessions of focus group discussions and 14 sessions of in-depth interviews were performed to collect the data. A qualitative content analysis was carried out, and some related themes and sub-themes were explored.

This study found that peer stigma was prevalent and negatively impacted the psychological, social and intellectual development of adolescents with mental disorders (MD) in Indonesian society. Five strategies to tackle peer stigma were proposed, including increasing mental health literacy (MHL), reducing the harmful effects of stigma, fostering a supportive social environment, expanding access to and improving the quality of mental health care and advocating for public health policies.

More qualitative research on the experiences and perspectives of victims, perpetrators and society concerning mental health stigma in adolescents is required to fully understand why stigma arises, what causative factors and repercussions it has, as well as how to deal with it.

Peer stigma still exists among adolescents. It has negative impacts on their mental and psychological well-being. MHL, social environment, the harmful effects of stigma, as well as mental health access and policy were concerns of this study. A school is a place where adolescents spend most of their social time. Schools play a vital part in the stigma-reduction program.

Mental health stigma among adolescents with MD is an issue that has potentially hindered mental health recovery. Anti-stigma intervention based on local perspectives is valuable in increasing the effectiveness and acceptance of interventions.

Advocates and researchers have made mental illness stigma elimination a public health priority. Research on stigma change strategies has highlighted programmatic delivery strengths; however, an area in need of further development is in messaging capable of attaining specific behavior change. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Change goals were incorporated into an existing model of stigma change to propose the TLC4 model (Targeted, Local, Credible, Continuous, Contact, Change Goals). This paper reviews health communications literature regarding tailored messaging, applying these principles to stigma change programs to enhance behavioral impact.

Tailored messages comprises four elements: capturing and maintaining attention, actively thinking about information, having emotional appeal, and making material relevant to each person. Incorporation of these elements enhances the likelihood of an individual making a behavior change.

This review can guide facilitators of stigma change programs to craft presentations with tailored messages in directive call-to-actions. Future directions for evaluation of message and behavioral change impact are discussed.

There has been growing awareness underpinned with legislative recognition of the need to reduce the stigma attached to mental health. Education is seen as an integral factor for this endeavour. The purpose of this paper is to review existing literature to determine both positive and negative attitudinal changes of health-care-related undergraduate students towards mental illness after a training intervention within higher education.

A search of papers written in the English Language was conducted between 2004 and 2021, using CINAHL, Eric, Educational Research Complete, Medline, psychINFO and SocIndex. Search terms used were undergraduate, attitudes or perceptions, mental illness/mental ill health, education, stigma and students.

In total, 24 studies were critically reviewed, which included experimental, descriptive and exploratory designs. The appraisal of papers used recognised evaluation tools to review the methodological quality. Findings suggest that overall, anti-stigma education has a significant positive effect for student attitudinal change.

Mental health anti-stigma education is beneficial for changing attitudes, however, more bio-medically framed training is less powerful for initiating change. Learning from those with the lived experience appears to have a more sustainable impact as indicated in some of the studies. There is a need for more exploratory research to gain further knowledge on the critical educational mechanisms that may foster more long-term reframing of positive attitudes towards mental health.

Training providers need to consider the compelling evidence base surrounding anti-stigma pedagogy that supports the use of individuals with experience of mental ill health within the educational processes.

Mental health stigma has potential for profound negative impact on individuals and at a wider societal level. Education is central to enable learners to consider their attitudes to mental illness to reduce stigmatising attitudes. Students on health-care-related courses are influential in becoming catalysts for change.

This paper has critically reviewed the literature examining the attitudes of health-care-related undergraduate students following anti-stigma education, offering insights into some of positive and negative attitudinal changes and opinions of the event. In particular contributing to an understanding on the important components for eradicating the stigma surrounding mental health.

The purpose of this paper is to describe the work of the Children and Young People's Programme of Time to Change, which is England's biggest campaign to end the stigma and discrimination that surrounds mental health.

The paper draws upon research into the nature and effects of mental health stigma and discrimination on young people and also outlines the strategy of the Time to Change campaign and its initial outcomes.

The paper includes testimonies from young people with lived experience of mental health problems about the stigma and discrimination they have faced. It also outlines the aims, objectives and stages of implementation of the Time to Change Children and Young People's Programme. The paper particularly focuses on the campaign work undertaken in secondary schools, the social leadership programme for young people with lived experience of mental health problems and the process of designing effective campaign messaging for social media.

Time to Change is England's biggest campaign to end the stigma and discrimination that surrounds mental health. This paper provides a unique insight into the process of developing and rolling out an anti-stigma campaign for young people.

Challenging the stigma of mental illness is a major public health concern. School‐based anti‐stigma education is in its infancy. Little attention has been given to the pedagogical structure of such education, and evidence shows some initiatives have been unsuccessful, or worse, increased stigma. This paper seeks to examine the impact of a novel approach to anti‐stigma education, which aims to overcome these problems, “inclusive dialogue”. It encourages young people to grapple with the complexities of mental illness, with emphasis on personal narratives rather than abstract concepts.

A small group of year 10 pupils participated in a series of inclusive dialogue sessions. Qualitative interviews with participants were conducted and their responses along with their contributions during the sessions were analysed.

Participants reported that taking part enhanced their confidence in talking about mental illness, increased their understanding and capacity for empathy towards others with mental health problems. They felt the understanding they gained was relevant to their lives and an important educational experience which they would carry forward into their adult lives.

Inclusive dialogue is a novel approach to education about mental illness which has been evaluated using innovative qualitative methods. It shows promise and requires further investigation.

Partnerships for public mental health are common. At a national and regional level, partnerships are frequently developed in order to co‐ordinate programmes to deliver public health outcomes, such as tackling stigma (see me, 2010) or promoting recovery (Elament, 2010; Scottish Recovery Network, 2010). At a European level, public mental health partnerships commonly exist to enhance learning and knowledge exchanges commonly between countries. While these partnerships are valuable, there is an increasing recognition that public mental health programmes must be embedded, shaped and realised at a regional level. Thus regions are not ‘implementers’ of national public mental health policy, but instead should be recognised and empowered to inform policy and practice. This approach was taken in Scotland when the national programme for mental health was renewed through a highly devolved and participatory consultation process and publication of Towards a Mentally Flourishing Scotland (Scottish Government, 2009). Against this backdrop, we examine a different model of partnership working; regional‐level international collaborations. This case study explores 'FINLAN': a collaboration between Lanarkshire Mental Health Improvement Group in Scotland and The South Ostrobothnia Project in Finland.

Mental illness has become an important public health issue in society, and media are the most common sources of information about mental illnesses. Thus, it is important to review research on mental illnesses and media. The purpose of this paper is to provide a narrative review of studies on mental illnesses in the media and identifies important research gaps.

A combination of searching key databases and examining reference lists of selected articles was used to identify relevant articles. In total, 41 empirical studies published in the last 12 years were reviewed.

The review found that substantial research had been done to investigate media portrayals of mental illnesses and the effects of such portrayals might have on the public. Media still portray mental illnesses negatively in general, which contributes to the ongoing mental illness stigmatization. Nonetheless, discussions of mental illnesses in direct-to-consumer advertisements and social media tend to be more objective and informative. These objective portrayals could help improve mental health literacy and reduce stigma. More importantly, media can also reduce the stigma if used strategically. Research has found that entertainment-education programs and web-based media have strong potential in reducing mental illness stigma. Recommendations for future research are also discussed.

Findings can guide future efforts to use media to educate the public about mental illnesses and reduce mental illness stigma.

This study reviews the most recent research on mental illnesses in the media and provides important references on the media representation of mental illnesses, media effects of such representation, and using media to reduce stigma.

The purpose of this paper is to describe the evaluation of a set of potential logos for a campaign aimed at promoting an environment of solidarity and support on college campuses for students with mental illness.

Participants completed an online survey responding to statements about college students and mental illness by selecting the logo they thought best represented each statement.

One-sample χ2 tests were conducted to assess difference in frequency of brand endorsement by statement.

Through use of the scientific method to evaluate three potential logos designed to represent this campaign, it is more likely that the campaign will have its intended impact, and avoid potential deleterious effects. Limitations of the study include the representativeness of the sample, and the fact that endorsement of statements may not translate to behavior, the ultimate outcome of interest. Future studies should include population research strategies.

A campaign such as the one described here, with a scientifically selected brand, may have a greater effect on stigma surrounding mental illness, a significant public health concern.

This is the first study of its kind to scientifically evaluate the brand for an anti-stigma program. The findings of this study would be of value to advocates, college and university administrators, staff, and educators, and college student with mental illness seeking to promote supportive environments on college and university campuses for students with mental illness.

Stigma and discrimination towards people with mental health problems is a global issue, imposing a considerable public health burden in terms of social isolation, limited life chances, delayed help‐seeking behaviour and stress. While numerous initiatives have been undertaken to address these issues, an evidence base for what works is still emerging. This paper explores the impact of 15 population‐level awareness workshops delivered over a five‐month period to 137 participants. These were employees drawn from workplaces identified as being important in the day‐to‐day lives of people with mental health problems. Evaluation approaches maximised specificity, sensitivity and anonymity and they assessed participant knowledge, attitude and behaviour. The workshops significantly improved participant knowledge. Attitude change was more complex with an overall significant improvement in attitudes, particularly in relation to unpredictability and recovery, but not dangerousness, which had more positive baseline attitudes. Social distance, a proxy for behavioural intent, had significant improvements in relation to ‘moderate’ social contact only. Qualitative feedback indicated that complex, unanticipated and positive messages had been absorbed by participants and influenced beliefs and behavioural intent. Service user narratives focusing on recovery were identified as the most valuable component of the intervention.