The Text-Picture Integration Scale for Perspectives on Mental Illness: Development and Validation

Importance: Understanding the root cause of mental illness stigma is necessary to adopt effective management strategies.

Objective: To establish a stable and effective text-picture integration rating scale to predict public perspectives on mental illness and to examine its reliability and validity.

Design: Descriptive cross-sectional study using internet survey data.

Setting: Online.

Participants: Two hundred volunteers.

Results: The 10-item the Text-Picture Integration Scale for Perspectives on Mental Illness was developed. The authors conducted data analysis using SPSS to evaluate the reliability and criterion-related validity of the Mental Health Literacy Scale (MHLS). The Text-Picture Integration Scale's item-level content validity index ranged from 0.83 to 1.00, and the scale-level content validity index was 0.97. The scale demonstrated acceptable reliability (Cronbach's α = .80). The mean value of individual items ranged from 3.18 to 4.48, and the mean total score was 39.44 (SD = 8.47). The Text-Picture Integration Scale exhibited satisfactory criterion-related validity with the MHLS (r = .76, p < .001).

Conclusions and relevance: Preliminary analyses support that the Text-Picture Integration Scale is a stable and effective rating scale to determine public perspectives on mental illness and is appropriate for evaluating destigmatization efforts. Plain-Language Summary: The study findings support the use of the Text-Picture Integration Scale as a stable and effective rating scale to determine public perspectives on mental illness. The scale is also appropriate for evaluating ways to address the stigmas that people associate with mental illness, which pose challenges for people in recovery. Occupational therapists can leverage their understanding of public perspectives on mental illness when choosing interventions to support the overall well-being of their clients with mental illness.