Stigma related to mental health issues – a study among adolescents in Sri Lanka

One definition of stigma is that it is a “collection of negative attitudes, beliefs, thoughts, and behaviours that influence the individual or the general public to fear, reject, avoid, be prejudiced, and discriminate against people” (1). Stigma impedes treatment seeking, erodes self-esteem and limits the individual’s social network. Although stigma was described as a unitary characteristic in earlier studies, currently it is understood as being more complex and having many dimensions and attributes (2-4). Culture also influences the way stigma relating to mental illness is presented (5).