State of the art of population-based attitude research on mental health: a systematic review.

Population surveys have become a frequently used method to explore stigma, help-seeking and illness beliefs related to mental illness. Methodological quality however differs greatly between studies, and our current knowledge seems heavily biased towards high-income countries. A critical appraisal of advances and shortcomings of psychiatric attitude research is missing. This review summarises and appraises the state of the art in population-based attitude research on mental health.