Consequences of Stigma in the Life of People with Mental Disorders: A Qualitative Research

Background: The stigma of mental disorder has destructive impacts on emotions, feelings, personal relationships, parenting, education, occupation, and house management of people with mental disorders. Understanding and awareness of the stigma consequences are important for the establishment and development of constructive relationships with people suffering from mental disorders as well as their care and treatment. This qualitative research aimed to explain the attitudes of people with mental disorder, the treatment team, and the patients’ families towards the consequences of stigma in the life of people with mental disorder. Methods: This study was conducted using a qualitative approach and content analysis method. Sixteen people (patients with mental disorder, their family members, psychiatrist, psychiatric nurse, social worker, legal expert) were selected from 3 psychiatric centers in Tehran by using targeted sampling method and were interviewed using semi-structured interviews until the data were saturated. Results: Content analysis of the interviews showed that people with mental disorder experience the consequences of stigma as fear of stigma, self-blame, searching for a cause for the disorder, denial, avoiding psychiatric treatment, rejection, discrimination, and relapse. Conclusion: The findings of this research can help the psychiatric team to make effective and targeted treatment decisions. Performing interventions to reduce stigma of mental disorder in society seems to be necessary.