Combination of a Serious Game Application and Direct Contact with Mental Health Patients

Currently, one of the difficulties associated with patient recovery from severe mental disorders is stigma. Some authors have even identified its effects as a second illness. In order to combat these difficulties, various stigma awareness programs have been launched. Furthermore, in recent years, new technologies have also been incorporated, such as in the cases of serious games (educational video games) designed for this purpose. The present study examines the combined effect of a serious game called Stigma-Stop with a stigma awareness program based on direct contact between students and mental health patients. A total of 313 students participated in the study. The individuals were divided into two experimental groups (one which utilized Stigma-Stop and another which did not) and a control group. The results demonstrated that the two interventions were effective in reducing stigma, but the group which featured the serious game obtained a greater improvement on the fear factor. The discussion section addresses the relevance of these results.

Automated summary

This study examines the combined effect of a serious game and a stigma awareness program on reducing stigma, with results showing that both interventions were effective in improving stigma but the serious game group showed greater improvement in the fear factor.