Attitudes towards disclosing a mental illness: impact on quality of life and recovery.

ABSTRACT:

Purpose

The decision whether to disclose a mental illness has individual and social consequences. Secrecy may protect from stigma and discrimination while disclosure can increase social support and facilitate help-seeking. Therefore, disclosure decisions are a key reaction to stigma. The first aim of this study was to test a newly developed scale to measure disclosure attitudes, the Attitudes to Disclosure Questionnaire (AtDQ). The second aim was to examine the impact of attitudes towards disclosing a mental illness on quality of life and recovery.

Methods

Among 100 participants with mental illness, disclosure attitudes, quality of life, recovery, benefits of disclosure, secrecy, social withdrawal, self-stigma, and depressive symptoms were assessed at weeks 0, 3 and 6. Psych

SUBMITTER: Mayer L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8784363 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature