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Clergy's Viewpoint Change Toward Mental Health and Stigma on Mental Illness: A Short Course Training Publisher



Taghva A1 ; Noorbala AA2 ; Khademi M3 ; Shahriari A4 ; Nasr Esfahani M5 ; Asadi A6 ; Mohsenifar J7 ; Yousefifard A8 ; Abolhassani M9 ; Bolhari J10 ; Hajebi A11 ; Rahnejat AM4 ; Shahedhaghghadam H12
Authors
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Authors Affiliations
  1. 1. Department of Psychiatry, Aja University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
  2. 2. Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatic Medicine Research Center, Imam Khomeini Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
  3. 3. Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Imam Hossein Hospital, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
  4. 4. Department of Clinical Psychology, Aja University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
  5. 5. Department of Psychiatry, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
  6. 6. Deputy Mental Health Office, Social Addiction Ministry of Health, Tehran, Iran
  7. 7. Department of Psychology, Disaster and Trauma Research Center, 505 Hospital, Aja University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
  8. 8. Center for Services of Islamic Seminaries, Qom, Iran
  9. 9. Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
  10. 10. Department of Psychiatry, Spiritual Health Research Center, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
  11. 11. Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Research Center for Addiction and Risky Behaviors, Social Injury Prevention Research Institute, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
  12. 12. Department of Clinical Psychology, Islamic Azad University, Varamin, Iran

Source: Frontiers in Psychiatry Published:2022


Abstract

Background: As stigma is one of the main barriers in promoting the mental health, the present study was designed with the purpose of reviewing clergy's viewpoint regarding the effect of mental health workshops on these barriers. Methods: For this study, by order of Iran's Health Ministry, a questionnaire was designed to examine the clergy's viewpoint related to mental illnesses and the consequent stigma. Ten faculty members and psychiatrists confirmed the questionnaire's validity after some modifications. In this research, 30 members of the clergy from the main religious city in Iran's “Qom” Seminary attended the training workshops for 2 days. The data obtained from the clergy's responses were analyzed using the SPSS software (ver.16) and descriptive and analytical tests. Also, the significance level was considered p < 0.05 in all tests. The results exhibited that the mean and standard deviation (Mean ± SD) of the clergy's attitude domain and awareness before the workshop was 1.90 ± 26.30 and 8.31 ± 1.64, respectively. Also, average and standard deviation (Mean ± SD) of their attitude domain and awareness after the workshop was 1.95 ± 29.73 and 1.18 ± 10.70, respectively. Discussion: The present study, which was designed to examine the clergy's viewpoint toward mental illnesses and the consequent stigma in the most considerable religious base in the country, illustrated that one strategy for reducing mental illness stigma in religious communities can be by holding training sessions to promote the clergy's awareness of and attitude toward mental health. Conclusion: There was a significant statistical difference between their awareness and attitude scores before and after the workshop (p < 0.01). In the present research, the awareness and attitude of clergy toward mental health and stigma due to mental illness was relatively good and significantly increased by holding the workshop. Copyright © 2022 Taghva, Noorbala, Khademi, Shahriari, Nasr Esfahani, Asadi, Mohsenifar, Yousefifard, Abolhassani, Bolhari, Hajebi, Rahnejat and Shahed-haghghadam.
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