Discrimination suffered by 80% of people with mental disorders

Un 80% de les persones amb trastorn mental ha patit discriminació — Istock/kieferpix

The study “L’estigma i la discriminació en salut mental a Catalunya 2016” (Stigma and Discrimination in Mental Health in Catalonia 2016) concludes that 80% of persons with mental disorders in Catalonia suffer some type of discrimination. Conducted by the UAB and Spora Sinergies for Obertament, the study indicates that this discrimination is present in almost all areas of their lives.

03/10/2016

It also indicates that more than half of them (55%) feel discriminated against “quite or very often”. Among the main discriminatory behaviours are overprotection and control (51.6%), avoidance and rejection (50.7%), contempt, scorns, insults or coercion (47.4%) and physical or sexual aggressions (11.9%).

These discriminations take place in all areas of the lives of those living with disorders, with the greatest groups being family (56.4%), friends (53.1%), health service personnel (47.5%), work colleagues (40.6%), significant other (40%) and educational sector (34.2%).

This stigmatisation and discrimination causes many of them to hide their mental illness (82.4%) and to abandon all leisure activities (40.9%) and not express their opinions publicly (39%).

With regard to employment, the research highlights that unemployment among this sector reaches 61%. In addition, 78.9% hide the fact that they have a mental disorder at job interviews. Of those who do not hide this, 19.2% affirm that they were treated unfairly.

A total of 112 persons participated in the study, which was divided into 14 focus groups: people with disorders, family members, mental health and health care professionals, human resource personnel, members of the education and youth sectors, with a total of 967 questionnaires answered.

The results obtained will help entities and institutions focus their efforts on the areas in which these discriminatory attitudes have been detected, with special emphasis in the educational, professional and health care sectors.

The study “L’estigma i la discriminació en salut mental a Catalunya 2016” was conducted with the aim to explore and identify psychosocial factors related to the stigma and discrimination suffered by people with mental disorders in Catalonia. It was conducted by researchers from the UAB Department of Social Psychology, coordinated by lecturer Miquel Domènech, and by the social consultancy Spora Sinergies, with the support of the Obra Social "la Caixa", for the Obertament platform, which brings together several entities working against the stigmatisation and discrimination of people suffering from mental disorders. The presentation of the study took place on Friday 30 September, in an event which include the presence of the government's spokesperson, Neus Munté.