Public Belief and Attitudes towards Depression in Italy: A National Survey

previous studies have shown that attitudes towords depression may be influenced by contri-spèecific social and cultural factors. A survey was carried out to collect believes and attitudes toward depression in Italy, which has an established community-based mental health system. our findings indicate that depression is seen as a reaction to significant life events that should be overcome with the support of significant others or the help of health professionals (mainly psychologist). However, there are still barriers to the disclosure of depressive symptoms to PCPs, and concerns about the addictive effect of antidepressants.