Loneliness has recently attracted scholars’ attention as there is a need for better knowledge of the phenomenon and their consequences on different gender and age groups. So far, most of attention has been dedicated to the problem of older adults; however, younger individuals seem to also appear very vulnerable to loneliness. This contribution is meant to open a window on adolescents’ loneliness or social isolation. Even at the age group considered in this study (individuals between 14 and 16 years old) loneliness appears to be a frequent problem. The contribution of the Internet and social media to this phenomenon needs to be clarified. Raising awareness on the seriousness of loneliness for an individual’s health and wellbeing appears today of paramount importance. Actions need to be taken at different levels to counteract the consequences of loneliness.
COBISS.SI-ID: 1541751492
The detrimental consequences of stigma have been recognized in research on mental illness stigma, but experiences of suicide-related stigmatization have not received sufficient attention. The lack of a simple self-report assessment of personal suicide-related stigma led to this contribution. The aim was to develop and assess the validity of the Personal Suicide Stigma Questionnaire (PSSQ). The item pool for PSSQ was based on qualitative data and was tested in a community sample of 224 adults (mean age = 32.68 years, 83% female) who reported lifetime suicidality. Factor analysis was used for item selection. The Self-Stigma of Mental Illness Scale - Short form (SSMIS-SF) and Suicide Behaviors Questionnaire - Revised (SBQ-R) were used to assess validity. Following analysis, 16 items, forming three highly interrelated factors (Rejection, Minimization, and Self-blame), were selected for the PSSQ. The PSSQ scores showed predicted relationships with mental illness stigma and suicidality, suggesting its validity; however, the validity of the scale requires further research in clinical populations. The newly developed PSSQ can be used to assess the levels of suicide-related stigma experiences of suicidal individuals.
COBISS.SI-ID: 1541036484
Mental health literacy is linked to knowledge on and attitudes towards mental health disorders and sources of help and greatly influences help-seeking behaviour in distress. In this study, we explored mental health literacy and knowledge of sources of help in mental distress in the adult population of Slovenia. In a web-based research, 1189 adults (591 male and 598 female) from all Slovenian regions participated. About 30% of participants report having mental health issues in the past, among those significantly more women. The level of mental health literacy was assessed using the Mental Health Literacy Scale (MHLS). Women achieve statistically significantly higher scores than men. Participants who report past mental health problems also score statistically significantly higher than those who did not have problems. The participants rated their knowledge of sources of help in mental distress on a scale from 1 (very poor) to 5 (very good). Only 22% of participants believe that they know the sources of help in mental distress well or very well, and women rate their knowledge higher than men. We can conclude that the self-assessment of knowledge of sources of help in mental distress is consistent with the results achieved by participants on the Mental Health Literacy Scale, with women achieving statistically significantly higher results than men.
COBISS.SI-ID: 1541603268
There are various effective treatment approaches for many mental health problems, but only a small proportion of people with mental health problems receive adequate help. One of the main reasons for the low level of help-seeking behaviour is the low level of mental health literacy and the stigmatization of mental disorders. The aim of the study was to explore the attitudes towards seeking professional psychological help among Slovenian students and how these attitudes are related to certain socio-demographic and other factors. We also explored mental health literacy and examined the level of stigmatization of mental disorders. 331 students participated in the study. Students generally have positive attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help. Acceptable attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help are positively associated with better mental health literacy and negatively associated with stigmatization of mental disorders. Students of medicine and psychology have more positive attitudes towards seeking help than students of other study fields. More acceptable views are also expressed by individuals who are better acquainted with the various options for help, have better access to them and have had experience with a mental health professional in the past.
COBISS.SI-ID: 1541559236
Slovenia has a high suicide rate of people older than 65 years. Suicide is a complex phenomenon, which is the result of biological, psychological, social and economic risk factors. The aim of this study is to explore the interaction among social factors, specifically between the degree of social isolation, the feeling of loneliness, the feeling of perceived burdensomeness and the feeling of thwarted belongingness in relationships and the risk for suicidal behaviour among older adults. Furthermore, the question arises if social factors can have a preventive role that protects against suicidal behaviour. The sample (N=120) consists of people older than 60 years living in Slovenia. We used a test battery consisting of questions about the demographic data and the social isolation of a person. We measured the degree of suicide risk with Paykel´s suicidal scale (PSS) and used the Interpersonal Needs Questionnaire (INQ-15) to assess perceived burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness. Loneliness was rated with a shorter form of the UCLA Loneliness Scale. The findings are reported in this conference contribution.
COBISS.SI-ID: 1541313220