Honest Open Proud to Reduce the Self-Stigma of Mental Illness in the College Population
The goal of this project is to evaluate the efficacy of a group-based intervention—the Honest, Open, Proud on College Campuses Program—in addressing the problem of self-stigma regarding mental illness among postsecondary students. The related research question is: What impact does the HOP program have on self-stigma surrounding mental illness and related constructs among postsecondary students?
Hypotheses for the proposed study include:
Participants in the HOP intervention group will experience an increase in….
•Relationship satisfaction and availability,
•Disclosure related self-efficacy,
•And adaptation to college…
… relative to a control group.
Participants in the HOP intervention group will experience a decrease in…
•Cognitive appraisal of stigma as a stressor,
•Self-Stigma,
•And Symptoms (anxiety, depression)…
… relative to a control group.
Many people with lived experience are impacted by the self-stigma of mental illness: namely, the challenge to self-esteem and self-efficacy when stereotypes are internalized often leading to a Why Try effect (i.e., “Why try to get a job; Why try to live alone”). Research has fairly consistently shown self-stigma yields negative outcomes. Self-stigma undermines the pursuit of personal goals (such as postsecondary education) that reflect psychosocial functioning. Self-stigma is associated with failing to take advantages of opportunities that promote vocation and independent living (Link, 1982). People with high self-stigma are also less likely to develop social networks related to leisure (Perlick et al., 2001), and to experience strained social interactions (Farina, Allen, & Saul, 1968) impacting one’s sense of belonging within their community (Link, Cullen, Struening, Shrout, & Dohrenwend, 1989; Newheiser & Barreto, 2014; Newheiser, Barreto, Ellemers, Derks, & Scheepers, 2015). Self-stigma is also associated with worse quality of life (Corrigan, Sokol, & Rusch, 2013; El-Badri & Mellsop, 2007; Sirey, Bruce et al., 2001a,b; Staring et al., 2009).
HOP is a three-session program led by two trained facilitators (students with mental illness) in groups of six to ten participants. The program was developed through Community-Based Participatory Research with campus community members and has been translated into Spanish through a grant funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. The program (1) helps participants weigh pros and cons of disclosing which vary by setting (e.g., coming out to one’s professor has different costs and benefits than coming out to one’s classmate or peer), (2) teaches relatively safe ways to disclose should the person decide to do so, and (3) helps people craft stories that reflect their disclosure goals. HOP was developed by the National Consortium on Stigma and Empowerment (NCSE, www.ncse1.org) over a three year, mixed methods process that combined feedback of advocates with serious mental illness, providers, and family members.
Kristin Kosyluk, was a doctoral student and Program Coordinator of the NCSE during this time and was involved with program development. The college version of the program represents the fourth revision of manual, workbook, and fidelity assessment (www.COPprogram.org) and includes adaptations and additions specific to a postsecondary population. HOP is thought to impact functioning through mediating effects on self-stigma. Results of two randomized controlled trials demonstrate benefits of the HOP program for adults with serious mental illness. The first (Rüsch et al., 2014) showed participants completing HOP recognized more benefits to disclosure and less need for secrecy. This in turn was related to diminished stress related to self-stigma and to disclosure as well as being more willing to ask for help when in need. In the second, a multisite study (Corrigan, Michaels et al., 2015), women who completed HOP showed significant reductions in depression compared to those in the control group, which were mediated by significant reductions in self-stigma and stress related to self-stigma. Completers also showed significant increase in perceived resources to deal with stigma compared to the control group.
This program is designed to reduce the self-stigma associated with mental illness by facilitating disclosure of one's mental illness specifically with college age students. The results of this study will help establish the efficacy of this program and should help guide the development of future anti-stigma programs, which may better the life experiences of people with mental illness on college campuses.
Visit the HOP website to learn more about the program: http://www.comingoutproudprogram.org/
The goal of this project is to evaluate the efficacy of a group-based intervention—the Honest, Open, Proud on College Campuses Program—in addressing the problem of self-stigma regarding mental illness among postsecondary students. The related research question is: What impact does the HOP program have on self-stigma surrounding mental illness and related constructs among postsecondary students?
Hypotheses for the proposed study include:
Participants in the HOP intervention group will experience an increase in….
•Relationship satisfaction and availability,
•Disclosure related self-efficacy,
•And adaptation to college…
… relative to a control group.
Participants in the HOP intervention group will experience a decrease in…
•Cognitive appraisal of stigma as a stressor,
•Self-Stigma,
•And Symptoms (anxiety, depression)…
… relative to a control group.
Many people with lived experience are impacted by the self-stigma of mental illness: namely, the challenge to self-esteem and self-efficacy when stereotypes are internalized often leading to a Why Try effect (i.e., “Why try to get a job; Why try to live alone”). Research has fairly consistently shown self-stigma yields negative outcomes. Self-stigma undermines the pursuit of personal goals (such as postsecondary education) that reflect psychosocial functioning. Self-stigma is associated with failing to take advantages of opportunities that promote vocation and independent living (Link, 1982). People with high self-stigma are also less likely to develop social networks related to leisure (Perlick et al., 2001), and to experience strained social interactions (Farina, Allen, & Saul, 1968) impacting one’s sense of belonging within their community (Link, Cullen, Struening, Shrout, & Dohrenwend, 1989; Newheiser & Barreto, 2014; Newheiser, Barreto, Ellemers, Derks, & Scheepers, 2015). Self-stigma is also associated with worse quality of life (Corrigan, Sokol, & Rusch, 2013; El-Badri & Mellsop, 2007; Sirey, Bruce et al., 2001a,b; Staring et al., 2009).
HOP is a three-session program led by two trained facilitators (students with mental illness) in groups of six to ten participants. The program was developed through Community-Based Participatory Research with campus community members and has been translated into Spanish through a grant funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. The program (1) helps participants weigh pros and cons of disclosing which vary by setting (e.g., coming out to one’s professor has different costs and benefits than coming out to one’s classmate or peer), (2) teaches relatively safe ways to disclose should the person decide to do so, and (3) helps people craft stories that reflect their disclosure goals. HOP was developed by the National Consortium on Stigma and Empowerment (NCSE, www.ncse1.org) over a three year, mixed methods process that combined feedback of advocates with serious mental illness, providers, and family members.
Kristin Kosyluk, was a doctoral student and Program Coordinator of the NCSE during this time and was involved with program development. The college version of the program represents the fourth revision of manual, workbook, and fidelity assessment (www.COPprogram.org) and includes adaptations and additions specific to a postsecondary population. HOP is thought to impact functioning through mediating effects on self-stigma. Results of two randomized controlled trials demonstrate benefits of the HOP program for adults with serious mental illness. The first (Rüsch et al., 2014) showed participants completing HOP recognized more benefits to disclosure and less need for secrecy. This in turn was related to diminished stress related to self-stigma and to disclosure as well as being more willing to ask for help when in need. In the second, a multisite study (Corrigan, Michaels et al., 2015), women who completed HOP showed significant reductions in depression compared to those in the control group, which were mediated by significant reductions in self-stigma and stress related to self-stigma. Completers also showed significant increase in perceived resources to deal with stigma compared to the control group.
This program is designed to reduce the self-stigma associated with mental illness by facilitating disclosure of one's mental illness specifically with college age students. The results of this study will help establish the efficacy of this program and should help guide the development of future anti-stigma programs, which may better the life experiences of people with mental illness on college campuses.
Visit the HOP website to learn more about the program: http://www.comingoutproudprogram.org/