(PS2-C75) Differences in Self-stigma of Depression and Its Treatment Between Two Cultures

Introduction: Worldwide, depression is undertreated and frequently stigmatized. Among Russian-speaking populations residing in the Russian Federation and countries which made up the former Soviet Bloc, estimates suggest that depression is a major public health concern, yet this population is understudied within the mental health field. Several cultural considerations, such as normalization of negative emotions and prioritization of control over one’s emotions, make this population especially vulnerable. The goal of this study was to compare self-stigma of depression and its treatment and factors associated with stigma between Russian-speaking residents of the former Soviet bloc and US-residing English-speakers.

Method: Participants were Russian speakers residing in the former Soviet bloc and English speakers residing in the US who had previously screened positive for depression in a multilingual international depression screener. American sample was further supplemented by a Qualtrics panel of depressed individuals, resulting in the final sample of 214 American and 33 Russian participants. Participants completed a survey, in English or Russian, consisting of a demographic questionnaire, PHQ-9 (Kroenke et al., 2002), Self-Stigma of Seeking Help (SSOSH; Vogel et al., 2006), and the Self-Stigma of Depression Scale (SSDS; Barney et al., 2010), which included four subscales: Responsibility, Self-Shame, Help-Seeking Inhibition, Social Inadequacy.

Results: No significant difference in depression stigma between cultures based on total score were observed; however, Russians endorsed higher self-blame than Americans (p = .05). Americans, however, reported higher scores on depression treatment stigma (p < .001). Across the entire sample, depression level directly related to higher stigma for all subscales of SDSS (all ps < .05) and for stigma of seeking help. However, 2-way interactions were observed between culture and depression level for Help-Seeking Inhibition and (to some extent) Self-Blame subscale: whereas the relationship was direct for American sample, the relationship was inverse for the Russian sample (p < .05, p = .078, respectively). Regarding total score on the SDSS, education level interacted with culture (p = .06); higher education was associated with lower depression stigma for Americans, but the reverse was true for Russians.

Conclusions: Results indicated several noteworthy differences between Russians and Americans regarding stigmatizing attitudes toward depression and its treatment. Though more research is needed to better capture attitudes towards depression in this understudied population, results may offer directions to improve psychoeducation and to promote treatment of depression.