{"title":"Reducing mental health stigma in academia: Assessing the acceptability of a first-person narrative program.","authors":"Andrew R Devendorf, Sarah Wilson, Wendy M Ingram","doi":"10.1037/ser0000908","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Academics are more likely to experience mental health difficulties like depression and anxiety. However, stigma remains a key barrier to help-seeking, and limited data exists on stigma reduction for academics. This study examines the acceptability of a first-person narrative-based antistigma program conducted by Dragonfly Mental Health at a large public university. This intervention used a multitiered approach that leverages education and contact strategies to reduce stigma among graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, staff, and faculty. Personal stories of six local faculty with lived experience of mental health struggles were shown in a short film during three separate departmental retreats, followed by moderated large and small group discussions. This study presents descriptive survey data from academics (<i>N</i> = 149) who attended one of these three programs. A thematic content analysis was conducted on open-ended responses from 86 participants. Overall, the Dragonfly Mental Health program was well-received: 95% of participants found the film beneficial, and over 92% felt the film and discussions reduced stigma. Qualitative analysis highlighted several themes on participants' experiences. Participants appreciated the open, honest disclosures of faculty members in the film but reported that the vague disclosures perpetuated stigma. Participants liked the normalization of mental illness but desired more representation from the mental health spectrum. Participants expressed frustration over an academic work culture that is defined by overwork and burnout. These findings suggest that sharing faculty stories is a powerful mechanism to build connectedness among academics, promote open communication, and foster change in academic culture around mental health. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).</p>","PeriodicalId":20749,"journal":{"name":"Psychological Services","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.9000,"publicationDate":"2024-10-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Psychological Services","FirstCategoryId":"102","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1037/ser0000908","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q3","JCRName":"PSYCHOLOGY, CLINICAL","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Academics are more likely to experience mental health difficulties like depression and anxiety. However, stigma remains a key barrier to help-seeking, and limited data exists on stigma reduction for academics. This study examines the acceptability of a first-person narrative-based antistigma program conducted by Dragonfly Mental Health at a large public university. This intervention used a multitiered approach that leverages education and contact strategies to reduce stigma among graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, staff, and faculty. Personal stories of six local faculty with lived experience of mental health struggles were shown in a short film during three separate departmental retreats, followed by moderated large and small group discussions. This study presents descriptive survey data from academics (N = 149) who attended one of these three programs. A thematic content analysis was conducted on open-ended responses from 86 participants. Overall, the Dragonfly Mental Health program was well-received: 95% of participants found the film beneficial, and over 92% felt the film and discussions reduced stigma. Qualitative analysis highlighted several themes on participants' experiences. Participants appreciated the open, honest disclosures of faculty members in the film but reported that the vague disclosures perpetuated stigma. Participants liked the normalization of mental illness but desired more representation from the mental health spectrum. Participants expressed frustration over an academic work culture that is defined by overwork and burnout. These findings suggest that sharing faculty stories is a powerful mechanism to build connectedness among academics, promote open communication, and foster change in academic culture around mental health. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).
期刊介绍:
Psychological Services publishes high-quality data-based articles on the broad range of psychological services. While the Division"s focus is on psychologists in "public service," usually defined as being employed by a governmental agency, Psychological Services covers the full range of psychological services provided in any service delivery setting. Psychological Services encourages submission of papers that focus on broad issues related to psychotherapy outcomes, evaluations of psychological service programs and systems, and public policy analyses.