BALTIMORE — When it comes to the perceived stigma associated with mental illness, age and gender differences exist, and this stigma continues to pose a significant barrier to care, reported Jo Anne Sirey, Ph.D., and Martha L. Bruce, Ph.D., of Cornell University, White Plains, N.Y.
They studied 125 older adults (aged 64 years and older) and 103 younger adults (aged 18-64 years) with DSM-IV major depressive disorder. Education levels and gender distributions were similar for both groups. Older adults were more likely than younger adults to believe that most people would accept that someone with mental illness was as intelligent (59% vs. 40%) and trustworthy (40% vs. 22%) as the average person, the researchers said in a poster presentation at the annual meeting of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry.
Also, a majority in each group perceived a high degree of discrimination and devaluation as a result of mental illness and believed this extended to the acceptance of individuals in various roles, such as teacher, job applicant, or suitor. Younger adults perceived an even higher level of stigma, compared with older adults, with young women reporting the highest levels of perceived stigma. Degree of perceived stigma was unrelated to depression severity.
“Individualized inquiry sensitive to age and gender stigma concerns can uncover potential barriers to care,” they concluded.