Measuring Beliefs and Norms About Persons With Mental Illness

NCT ID: NCT03656770

Last Updated: 2019-08-12

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: COMPLETED
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 1782 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2016-12-13
• Study Completion Date: 2018-06-08

Brief Summary

Survey experiment to estimate drivers of mental illness stigma

Detailed Description

Despite significant advances in scientific understanding of brain and substance use disorders accompanied by significant advances in treatment and improvements in prognosis, mental illness remains highly stigmatized throughout the world. Previous studies suggest that portraying mental illness as treatable can reduce negative attitudes toward persons with mental illness. This randomized controlled trial compares the effects of exposing study participants to vignettes portraying persons with untreated and symptomatic mental illness vs. treated mental illness with complete response vs. treated mental illness with relapse. It is hypothesized, based on prior work, that study participants exposed to vignettes depicting treated mental illness with completed response would have the greatest effect on reducing negative attitudes toward persons with mental illness, followed by treated mental illness with relapse and untreated and symptomatic mental illness.

Conditions

Mental Illness; Schizophrenia; Bipolar Disorder; Depression

Study Design

• Allocation Method: RANDOMIZED
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Primary Study Purpose: OTHER
• Blinding Strategy: TRIPLE

Study Groups

V1: Control

This version of the survey questionnaire depicts a young woman with no symptoms of mental illness.

Group Type: NO_INTERVENTION

No interventions assigned to this group

V2: Schizophrenia

As this is a survey experiment, the "intervention" involves random assignment to a survey questionnaire with specific wording. This version of the survey questionnaire depicts a young woman with untreated and symptomatic schizophrenia.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Survey questionnaire

Intervention Type: OTHER

Each version of the questionnaire portrays a young Ugandan woman with different profiles of illness severity, treatment, and treatment response.

V3: Schizophrenia + Tx with Response

As this is a survey experiment, the "intervention" involves random assignment to a survey questionnaire with specific wording. This version of the survey questionnaire depicts a young woman with schizophrenia, successfully treated with complete response.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Survey questionnaire

Intervention Type: OTHER

Each version of the questionnaire portrays a young Ugandan woman with different profiles of illness severity, treatment, and treatment response.

V4: Schizophrenia + Tx with Relapse

As this is a survey experiment, the "intervention" involves random assignment to a survey questionnaire with specific wording. This version of the survey questionnaire depicts a young woman with schizophrenia, successfully treated with partial relapse.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Survey questionnaire

Intervention Type: OTHER

Each version of the questionnaire portrays a young Ugandan woman with different profiles of illness severity, treatment, and treatment response.

Version 5: Bipolar

As this is a survey experiment, the "intervention" involves random assignment to a survey questionnaire with specific wording. This version of the survey questionnaire depicts a young woman with untreated and symptomatic bipolar disorder.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Survey questionnaire

Intervention Type: OTHER

Each version of the questionnaire portrays a young Ugandan woman with different profiles of illness severity, treatment, and treatment response.

V6: Bipolar + Tx with Response

As this is a survey experiment, the "intervention" involves random assignment to a survey questionnaire with specific wording. This version of the survey questionnaire depicts a young woman with bipolar disorder, successfully treated with complete response.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Survey questionnaire

Intervention Type: OTHER

Each version of the questionnaire portrays a young Ugandan woman with different profiles of illness severity, treatment, and treatment response.

V7: Bipolar + Tx with Relapse

As this is a survey experiment, the "intervention" involves random assignment to a survey questionnaire with specific wording. This version of the survey questionnaire depicts a young woman with bipolar disorder, successfully treated with partial relapse.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Survey questionnaire

Intervention Type: OTHER

Each version of the questionnaire portrays a young Ugandan woman with different profiles of illness severity, treatment, and treatment response.

V8: Depression

As this is a survey experiment, the "intervention" involves random assignment to a survey questionnaire with specific wording. This version of the survey questionnaire depicts a young woman with untreated and symptomatic major depressive disorder.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Survey questionnaire

Intervention Type: OTHER

Each version of the questionnaire portrays a young Ugandan woman with different profiles of illness severity, treatment, and treatment response.

V9: Depression + Tx with Response

As this is a survey experiment, the "intervention" involves random assignment to a survey questionnaire with specific wording. This version of the survey questionnaire depicts a young woman with major depressive disorder, successfully treated with complete response.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Survey questionnaire

Intervention Type: OTHER

Each version of the questionnaire portrays a young Ugandan woman with different profiles of illness severity, treatment, and treatment response.

V10: Depression + Tx with Relapse

As this is a survey experiment, the "intervention" involves random assignment to a survey questionnaire with specific wording. This version of the survey questionnaire depicts a young woman with major depressive disorder, successfully treated with partial relapse.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Survey questionnaire

Intervention Type: OTHER

Each version of the questionnaire portrays a young Ugandan woman with different profiles of illness severity, treatment, and treatment response.

Interventions

Survey questionnaire

Each version of the questionnaire portrays a young Ugandan woman with different profiles of illness severity, treatment, and treatment response.

Intervention Type: OTHER

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• all persons who considered Nyakabare Parish their primary place of residence and who were capable of providing consent

Exclusion Criteria

• minors younger than 18 years of age, with the exception of emancipated minors
• persons who did not consider Nyakabare their primary place of residence, e.g., persons who happened to be visiting Nyakabare at the time of the survey or who owned a home in Nyakabare but spent most of their time outside the parish
• persons with whom research staff could not communicate, e.g., due to deafness, mutism, or aphasia
• persons with psychosis, neurological damage, acute intoxication, or other cognitive impairment (all of which were determined informally in the field by non-clinical research staff in consultation with a supervisor)

• Minimum Eligible Age: 18 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Sponsors

Massachusetts General Hospital

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Alexander Tsai

Associate Professor of Psychiatry

Responsibility Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

Alexander C Tsai, MD

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Massachusetts General Hospital

Locations

Mbarara University of Science and Technology

Mbarara, , Uganda

Countries

Uganda

References

Rasmussen JD, Kakuhikire B, Baguma C, Ashaba S, Cooper-Vince CE, Perkins JM, Bangsberg DR, Tsai AC. Portrayals of mental illness, treatment, and relapse and their effects on the stigma of mental illness: Population-based, randomized survey experiment in rural Uganda. PLoS Med. 2019 Sep 20;16(9):e1002908. doi: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1002908. eCollection 2019 Sep.

Reference Type: DERIVED

PMID: 31539373 (View on PubMed)

Other Identifiers

2013P000395

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id