Perinatal mental health literacy: knowledge, attitudes, and help-seeking among perinatal women and the public – a systematic review

Table 3 Stigmatizing attitudes and beliefs reported in studies

Authors	Stigmatizing attitudes and beliefs^a	Levels of stigma^b
Branquinho 2019 [30]	It is normal to have PPD (17.6%); women with postpartum depression cannot be good mothers (11.4%); postpartum depression is not a sign of weakness (disagreement 11.6%); women know, by nature, how to look after a baby (23.8%); women have postpartum depression because they have unrealistic expectations about caring for a baby (12.1%)
Branquinho 2020 [31]		Attitudes towards PPD: M = 2.52; SD = 0.51^c; Indifference to stigma: M = 0.76; SD = 0.73^d
Dunford 2017 [34]		Indifference to stigma: M = 21.11; SD = 7.53^e
Fonseca 2018 [37]		Indifference to stigma: M = 3.29; SD = 0.75^d
Highet 2011 [18]	It is normal to be depressed during pregnancy (agree / strongly agree: 52%); it is normal to have PPD (agree / strongly agree: 24%); knowing how to look after a baby comes naturally to women (agree / strongly agree: 19%)
Smith 2019 [55]	It is normal to be depressed during pregnancy (agree / strongly agree: 32%); postnatal depression is a normal part of having a baby (agree / strongly agree: 18.5%); knowing how to look after a baby comes naturally to women (agree / strongly agree: 21.6%)
Thorsteinsson 2018 [57]		Pre-intervention personal stigma (averaged across groups): M = 6.69^f; Pre-intervention perceived stigma (averaged across groups); M = 17.14^f

^a Reported by more than 10% of participants
^b Studies reporting mean values without any associated standard values
^c Attitudes about Postpartum Depression Questionnaire (APPD-Q [30]); higher scores indicate more negative attitudes
^d Stigma subscale of the Portuguese version of the Inventory of Attitudes Toward Seeking Mental Health Services (IATSMHS [61]); higher scores indicate more stigma towards PPD; range 0–4
^e The Inventory of Attitudes Towards Seeking Mental Health Services (IASMHS [62]); stigma subscale (indifference to stigma, range 0–32)
^f Depression Stigma Scale (DSS [63]); 18-items; personal stigma subscale; 5-point likert scale; scale scores ranging from 0 to 72; higher scores indicate greater stigma

ISSN: 1471-2393