Factors Influencing the Attitude of Urban Residents Toward People Living with Mental Illness in Northwest, Nigeria
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Date
2023-04-20
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
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Publisher
Kampala International University, Uganda
Abstract
Objectives: The study investigated respondents’ attitudes toward people living with mental, illness the relationship between attitude toward those individuals and socio-demographic characteristics, and factors influencing attitude toward those individuals among urban residents of North-western Nigeria.
Methods and Material: An analytic cross-sectional design adopted to interview 435 respondents recruited using multistage sampling technique. A structured interviewer-guided questionnaire was used to obtain data, organized and analyzed with SPSS version 20. The data were summarized using frequency distribution tables and percentages. Chi-square was used to test the relationship between attitude scores on people with mental health issues and socio-demographic characteristics at 5% level of significance, within a 95% confidence interval.
Results: Half (50.8%) of respondents had a positive attitude toward people living with mental illness. Statistically, significant association was found between attitude toward those individuals and age (χ2=403.026, p=<0.0001), gender (χ2=158.303, p=<0.0001), religion (χ2=65.527, p=<0.0001), ethnicity (χ2=230.851, p=<0.0001), educational status (χ2=268.044, p=<0.0001) and occupation (χ2=293.922, p=<0.0001) of the respondents. Factors influencing attitude to people with mental health issues were gender (84.7%), literacy level (72.0%), age (76.4%) and severity of illness (76.4%), previous encounters with individuals living with mental illness (77.6%) as well as fear of individuals with mental illness (86.0%).
Conclusions: Approximately half of the respondents indicated negative attitude towards people with mental health issues. Thus, advocacy for, and educating community members toward individuals with mental illness might improve positive attitudes toward mental health issues. Further exploring cultural perspectives will aid in improving positive attitudes towards people with mental health issues.
Description
A Community Mental Health Paper.
Urban dwellers continue to have negative attitudes towards people with mental health issues. Advocacy for, and continuing educating community education on destigmatisation towards individuals with mental illness is advocated. In addition, exploring cultural strategies for doing this should form future studies.
Keywords
Attitude, People living with mental illness, urban residents, Northwest Nigeria
Citation
Murtala, H.H.,Haddad, M.M., Abubakar, A.A., Anyebe, E.E., Umar, M.U. and Alhassan, M. (2023). Factors Influencing the Attitude of Urban Residents Toward People Living with Mental Illness in Northwest, Nigeria; Kampala International University (KIU) Journal of Science, Engineering and Technology (KJSET): 166-175; ISSN: 1958-0641