Literature Review - 1

About Stigma in Mental Health

Literature by Helen Christensen

1. Stigma about depression and its impact on help-seeking intentions
   Conclusion: Stigma exists prevalently; from both oneself and others, also caused by expectation of negative response (from doctors/psychologists). Young people are more unwilling to seek for help when meeting mental-health problems.
   Note: Data and analysis is provided, but no practical solutions are presented.
2. Stigma in response to mental disorders: a comparison of Australia and Japan
   Conclusion: Stigma exists in both countries; stigma is more serious in Japan.
   Notes: Possible solutions:
1. Reduce social conformity and individualism.
   (impossible for a game)
2. Improve service delivery system, so that people with mental problems can contact with the society more frequently.
   (impossible for a game)
3. Provide education about public mental health (stigma reduction programs included).
   For the game: provide such kind of education and stigma reduction programs in the gameplay, e.g. embedded in the game stories, a mission on this topic, etc.
4. Conduct public awareness programs to show the real rate of stigma in the community.
   (impossible for a game)
5.  Increase people's willingness to talk with a person with mental disorder
   For the game: provide education to increase people's willingness. It is possible to integrate this education with the stories/mission in 3.
3. Exploring the nature of stigmatising beliefs about depression and help-seeking: Implications for reducing stigma
   Conclusion: Points in reducing stigma (of depression):
   target attributions of blame; decrease depressed people's avoidance; make people feel that depression is a "health condition" rather than "mental illness"; increase help-sources' response.
   Notes: Possible solutions (for stigma around depression):
1. Provide education about the raise of depression
   For the game: Introduce some mental problems and their causes and solutions. But it may make the game boring.
2. Reduce the concerns about others' negative attitude
   (impossible for a game)
3. Reduce psychology professionals negative responses towards people with mental problems
   (impossible for a game)
4. Change the general public attitude towards people with mental problems
   (impossible for a game)
4. Effects of a Cognitive-Behavioural Internet Program on Depression, Vulnerability to Depression and Stigma in Adolescent Males: A School-Based Controlled Trial
   Conclusion: Internet cognitive behaviour therapy programs like MoodGYM can decrease the risk of depression.
   Notes:
   Possible solutions:
1. The programs should be attractive to the users (adolescent males) and should not be too difficult.
   For the game: If mental education stories or missions are applied in the game, they should be easy and interesting
2. The program materials should be in a format that are not difficult to the users.
   For the game: Similar to the above one.
3. Pay attention to the short lasting effect.
   For the game: Do the education repeatedly in different stories and missions. May make the game boring.

About Counselling Psychology

1. Handbook of Counselling Psychology
   (695 pages)
   The book talks about the development of counselling psychology and many aspects and issues about counselling psychology.