Stigma Among Chinese Medical Students Toward Individuals With Mental Illness

The current study aimed to examine medical students' attitudes toward individuals with mental illness. Stratified cluster sampling was used to survey 735 Chinese medical students from three medical universities in Shandong, China. Participants completed the Perceived Devaluation and Discrimination Scale (PDD). Scores on the devaluation subscale items (mean = 2.80, SD = 0.59) were lower than the mid-point score (i.e., 3) (p < 0.001), and scores on the discrimination subscale items (mean = 3.20, SD = 0.52) were higher than the midpoint score (p < 0.001). Higher scores indicated more negative attitudes toward individuals with mental illness. Significant gender differences were found in the discrimination subscale scores and total PDD scores, with lower scores in men compared with women. Compared with medical students in other years, students in their senior year of medical school had the lowest scores on the discrimination subscale. Students may benefit from increased education regarding psychology and psychiatry and by having more contact with individuals with mental illness.