Factors Influencing Attitudes toward the Mentally Ill in Nursing Students: Focusing on Mental Health Literacy and Compassion

Objectives: The aim of this study was to examine the levels of mental health literacy, compassion, and attitudes toward people with mental illness among nursing students, and to identify the factors influencing these attitudes. Methods: A total of 171 nursing students from two cities participated in the study. Data were collected between February and March 2023. The Mental Health Literacy Scale, Ajou Compassionate Love Scale, and Community Attitudes toward the Mentally Ill Inventory were used to measure the variables. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, independent t-tests, ANOVA, Pearson’s correlation coefficients, and multiple regression analysis. Results: Higher levels of mental health literacy and compassion were associated with lower authoritarianism and social restrictiveness, and with higher levels of benevolence and community mental health ideology. Mental health literacy was a significant predictor of all four subdomains of attitudes: authoritarianism, benevolence, social restrictiveness, and community mental health ideology. Compassion also significantly influenced benevolence, social restrictiveness, and community mental health ideology. Conclusions: These findings suggest that implementing educational programs aimed at improving mental health literacy and fostering compassion may lead to more positive attitudes toward individuals with mental illness among nursing students.