Knowledge and Attitudes of Nigerian Journalists Towards Sufferers of Mental Illness

Prevalence of mental illness and the mass media negative portrayals of sufferers are on the increase in Nigeria. This study therefore aimed at assessing journalists’ knowledge of mental illness and their corresponding attitudinal posture towards sufferers of mental illness in Nigeria. The study design was cross sectional descriptive, using multi-stage sampling technique to randomly select 2470 journalists from 13 cities across Nigeria’s six geo-political zones. Respondents were 60.97% and 39.03%, males and females respectively. The mean age was 45.41years, with socio-demographics of a minimum of secondary education and a minimum salary of N5, 000 (33.33 United States dollars) monthly. Data was generated with the aid of a structured questionnaire measuring respondents’ knowledge of mental illness and attitudes towards its sufferers. The data was statistically analyzed and the results showed (i) that in Nigeria journalists have poor knowledge of the diseases of mental illness, (ii) journalists possess negative attitudes towards sufferers of mental illness (iii) journalists poor knowledge of mental illness does determine their negative attitudes towards mental illness. The study recommended, among others, that legislation be made, encouraging media practitioners to enforce anti-stigma campaigns in Nigeria. Key Words: Nigeria, Journalist, Knowledge, Attitude, Portrayal, Mental Illness. JCMRJournal of Communication and Media Research, Vol. 1, No. 1, April 2009, 59 – 69 About the author Christian Ewhrudjakpor Ph.D, is a Senior Lecturer and Head, Department of Sociology & Psychology, Delta State University, Abraka, Delta State, Nigeria. Full Article Words: 3,994 Pages: 11 To access full article, click on download. Article Citation Ewhrudjakpor , C. (2009): Knowledge and attitudes of Nigerian journalists towards sufferers of mental illness. Journal of Communication and Media Research 1(1): 59 – 69.