Assessment of knowledge and attitude towards mental illness among young and older people, in a selected rural community, Bankura, West Bengal

Abstract

A descriptive comparative survey was conducted to assess the knowledge and attitude towards mental illness among young and older people in Karakdanga, Bankura, West Bengal. The study is aimed to assess the knowledge and attitude toward mental illness among young and older people. Participants (n1=55, n 2=55) were selected by simple random sampling. Knowledge was assessed by a valid, reliable structured knowledge questionnaire and attitude was assessed by the standardized tool CAMI (Community Attitudes towards Mentally Ill). The findings revealed that the mean knowledge score (17.32) of young was higher than older people (10.89) which is evident by the ‘t’ value of 9.36 [1.98 with df (108), p<0.05] The mean attitude score(17.32) of young was higher than older people (10.89) which is evident by the ‘t’ value of 21.68 [1.98 with df (108)] at a 0.01 level of significance. A strongly positive relationship exists between knowledge and attitude towards mental illness (r=0.74).