From us versus them to Us Interventions to support recovery and reduce (self)stigmatization

This thesis examines interventions aimed at reducing public, professional, and self-stigmatisation in mental health care and supporting personal recovery. Across studies involving mental health professionals, adolescents, and young adults with severe mental illness, it explores how contact-based approaches, continuum thinking, and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) may contribute to reducing “us versus them” distinctions.
The findings show that stigma is not easily changed through a single mechanism. Contact-based interventions and continuum-oriented approaches showed promising effects on attitudes and social distance, although effects on explicit stigma measures were not consistent across studies. ACT-based interventions similarly yielded mixed effects on self-stigmatisation, while improvements in personal recovery and functioning were observed. However, without a control group, these improvements cannot be attributed to the intervention. Qualitative findings highlighted experiences of belonging, recognition, safety, normalisation, and taking meaningful action as particularly important.
Taken together, the studies suggest that supporting recovery and reducing stigmatisation may require more than directly challenging negative beliefs. Creating opportunities for meaningful contact, recognising shared human experiences, increasing psychological flexibility, and enabling people to move towards personally meaningful lives may all contribute to weakening the boundaries between “us” and “them”.
The thesis argues for a broader, relational understanding of stigma reduction: one that combines cognitive, experiential, and social processes and ultimately aims to foster a stronger orientation towards Us.