Community Stigma

4.3 Community Stigma around People with Mental Illness in Akure

From the responses obtained from the study participants, the stigma towards people with mental illnesses is defines as real (Angermeyer & Dietrich, 2006, 169); however, the degree of stigmatization is determined by the level of knowledge and awareness among the respondents. For instance, the medical personnel show a high level of understanding and positive attitude towards the mentally ill people. Out of the medical personnel 10 respondents, 8 of them had a positive attitude towards these people which represents an 80% of the positive perception among the medical staff. The perception and attitude varied among the respondents. The respondents from the general public depicted a

It appears that a mentally ill child faces malicious stigma by their families. The study found out that parents would not regard mentally ill children as theirs, and would reject mentally ill children in social institutions such as schools and hospitals (Adewuya & Makanjuola, 2008). From the study, stigmatizing attitudes were prevalent among health care practitioners at about 30%. In particular, the responses that nurses gave show that the victims receive poor care from their family members and thus, are sub-human. One respondent confirmed the fear that nurses feel there is a need for special training to provide quality care for people with mental illness, thereby showing stigmatization at the professional

Most respondents contended that people in Akure, Ondo state believe mental illness is a bewitchment, and often associated with evil spirits (Angermeyer, and Dietrich 2006, 167). Many respondents agree with the belief that the mentally ill might have committed social evils within the community such as stealing, lying, committing sin with innocent people, and thus, were bewitched. In addition to the cultural explanations, the respondents also listed drug and substance abuse as some of the social forces behind mental illness and the associated stigma. Consequently, this perspective resulted in the blame for negligence, in particular on the part of victims instead of understanding and showing them care, thereby eliciting negligence-based