Table 3.
Responses to the R-DAQ items (with no item reverse scoring) ranked by extent of agreement (agreement = combining agree and strongly agree)
| Depression attitudes: R-DAQ factors and items | No in agreement | Percent | Mean | Std. deviation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Professional confidence in depression care | ||||
| 19: It is rewarding to spend time looking after depressed patients | 356/599 | 59.4 | 3.50 | 0.98 |
| 8: I am more comfortable working with physical illness than with mental illnesses like depression (R) | 356/601 | 59.2 | 3.52 | 1.09 |
| 11: My profession is well placed to assist patients with depression | 328/599 | 54.8 | 3.37 | 1.07 |
| 7: I feel confident in assessing depression in patients | 323/598 | 54.0 | 3.32 | 0.99 |
| 1: I feel comfortable in dealing with depressed patients’ needs | 320/601 | 53.2 | 3.29 | 1.03 |
| 15: My profession is well trained to assist patients with depression | 265/600 | 44.2 | 3.13 | 1.08 |
| 17: I feel confident in assessing suicide risk in patients presenting with depression | 220/599 | 36.7 | 3.00 | 1.08 |
| Therapeutic optimism/pessimism about depression | ||||
| 5: One of the main causes of depression is a lack of self-discipline and will-power (R) | 402/598 | 67.2 | 3.65 | 1.06 |
| 12: Becoming depressed is a way that people with poor stamina deal with life difficulties (R) | 339/597 | 56.8 | 3.38 | 1.07 |
| 9: Becoming depressed is a natural part of being old (R) | 257/599 | 42.9 | 3.02 | 1.17 |
| 13: Once a person has made up their mind about taking their own life no one can stop them (R) | 182/599 | 30.4 | 2.56 | 1.23 |
| 6: Depression treatments medicalise unhappiness (R) | 168/592 | 28.4 | 2.97 | 0.92 |
| 20: Becoming depressed is a natural part of adolescence (R) | 145/600 | 24.2 | 2.58 | 1.06 |
| 18: Depression reflects a response which is not amenable to change (R) | 115/597 | 19.3 | 2.48 | 0.99 |
| 21: There is little to be offered to depressed patients who do not respond to initial treatments (R) | 111/598 | 18.6 | 2.47 | 1.04 |
| 3: Psychological therapy tends to be unsuccessful with people who are depressed (R) | 78/601 | 13.0 | 2.15 | 0.96 |
| 4: Antidepressant therapy tends to be unsuccessful with people who are depressed (R) | 51/596 | 8.6 | 2.06 | 0.88 |
| Generalist perspective about depression occurrence, recognition and management | ||||
| 22: Anyone can suffer from depression | 500/599 | 83.5 | 4.06 | 1.03 |
| 10: All health professionals should have skills in recognising and managing depression | 478/600 | 79.7 | 3.99 | 0.99 |
| 16: Recognising and managing depression is often an important part of managing other health problems | 463/600 | 77.2 | 3.86 | 0.98 |
| 14: People with depression have care needs similar to other medical conditions like diabetes, COPD or arthritis. | 417/599 | 69.6 | 3.64 | 1.15 |
| 2: Depression is a disease like any other (e.g. asthma, diabetes) | 359/601 | 59.7 | 3.38 | 1.39 |
R indicates items that are reversed for summary scale and sub-scale scoring