Does type of traumatic experience result in differing stigmatization or mental health literacy of posttraumatic stress disorder?

摘要

Numerous studies have examined the stigmatization and Mental Health Literacy of rape. None to date have examined and compared if a difference of opinion or stigmatization exists for other types of traumatic experiences specifically from military and natural disaster experiences. Because previous rape studies have demonstrated that victims of sexual assaults are often blamed and stigmatized, the purpose of this study is to gauge if difference(s) can be observed between varying types of traumatic experiences. In addition, a Major Depressive and normal (control) condition were included in the study for comparison purposes. Participants (N = 281) were randomly assigned to one of five vignettes and were asked to fill out a series of questionnaires assessing stigmatization and opinions about a target described in the vignette. The primary hypotheses were not supported: natural disaster was not stigmatized less than the other trauma conditions nor as rape stigmatized more. In addition, participants among this sample were found to correctly diagnose the mental health conditions.