The effects of a documentary film on explicit and implicit aspects of stigmatisation towards people diagnosed with schizophrenia

Background and Objectives: Stereotypes about schizophrenia may lead to prejudicial attitudes and discrimination with debilitating effects on people diagnosed with schizophrenia. There is thus a need to develop interventions aiming to prevent, reduce or eliminate such stereotypes. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of a documentary film on schizophrenia on cognitive, affective and behavioural aspects of stigmatisation. Methods: Forty-nine participants were assessed on explicit measures of stereotypes and social distance, and on the Model of Stereotype Content (Fiske, Cuddy, Glick, & Xu, 2002), which includes measures of stereotypes, emotional reactions and behavioural tendencies. Furthermore, implicit affective attitudes were measured using the Affect Misattribution Procedure (Payne, Cheng, Govorum, & Stewart, 2005). Participants were randomly assigned into either a Film (who viewed the documentary film) or a Control group. Results: Only participants in the Film group revealed a significant decrease of negative stereotypes (Dangerousness and Unpredictability) and desired Social distance, and an increase in the perception of sociability in persons with schizophrenia. Limitations: No effects were found regarding the implicit measure. Conclusions: These findings suggest that a documentary film promoting indirect contact with people diagnosed with schizophrenia is a promising tool to prevent and reduce explicit aspects of stigmatisation regarding schizophrenia.