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Cited by 33Mental Health Treatment and AccessAttention Deficit Hyperactivity DisorderNeuroethics, Human Enhancement, Biomedical Innovations

Over-diagnosed and over-treated: a survey of Australian public attitudes towards the acceptability of drug treatment for depression and ADHD

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Partridge, Brad, Lucke, Jayne, Hall, Wayne·2014·BMC Psychiatry
DOI 10.1186/1471-244x-14-74PMC PMC3975148
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Abstract

BACKGROUND: Over the last decade the use of psychotropic medications to treat common mental health problems has increased in Australia. This paper explores: 1) public attitudes towards the acceptability of using prescription drugs to treat depression and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and 2) beliefs about over-diagnosis of depression and ADHD. METHOD: 1293 members of the general public were surveyed about their attitudes towards drug treatment for depression and ADHD through the Queensland Social Survey (QSS), an omnibus state-wide survey of households in the state of Queensland. The survey was administered through a CATI (computer-assisted telephone interviewing) system. Logistic regression analyses were used to predict belief that drug treatment is acceptable, and that depression and ADHD are over-diagnosed. RESULTS: Most participants (60.9%) said that it was acceptable to use prescription drugs to treat depression. In contrast, attitudes towards the use of prescription drugs to treat ADHD were much less positive with around the same proportion saying it was acceptable (42.1%) as unacceptable (38.2%). More than half of the sample agreed that too many people are diagnosed with depression when they don't really have it (57.7%), and 78.3% of participants agreed that too many children are diagnosed with ADHD when they don't really have it. Participants who said depression or ADHD were over-diagnosed were less likely to say that it is acceptable to treat these conditions with prescription drugs. CONCLUSIONS: Despite increases in prescribing rates there is still considerable scope for increasing the public's acceptance of treating common mental illnesses with psychotropic drugs. Furthermore, the public's views on over-diagnosis of depression and ADHD appear to reflect ongoing controversy about the proper identification of these conditions, and these views negatively impact attitudes towards drug treatment. This may be a barrier to effective treatment of these conditions given that drug treatment is often recommended as a first line response.

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  • Cultural context is relevant, and biological and sociological explanatory models appear to contribute differentially to stigma based on cultural values.

    “However, cultural context is also relevant, and biological and sociological explanatory models appear to contribute differentially to stigma based on cultural values. 360”

    From Time for united action on depression: a Lancet–World Psychiatric Association Commission (2022) · cites this paper as [360]

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Authors
Partridge, B., Lucke, J., & Hall, W.
Affiliations
The University of Queensland (AU)
Corresponding author
Partridge, Brad
ORCID
Venue
BMC Psychiatry
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Published
2014-03-13
Volume
14
Issue
1
Pages
74-74
ISSN
1471-244X (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1186/1471-244x-14-74
PMC
PMC3975148
OpenAlex
W1988618027
Cited by
33
References
24
Citations by year
2026: 1 · 2025: 1 · 2024: 1 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 5 · 2021: 5 · 2020: 1 · 2019: 4 · 2018: 2 · 2017: 3 · 2016: 3 · 2015: 3 · 2014: 1
FWCI
4.93
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • BMC Psychiatry (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
Central Queensland University
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Mental Health Treatment and Access
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neuroethics, Human Enhancement, Biomedical Innovations
Keywords
public attitudes, psychotropic drugs, depression, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, overdiagnosis, overtreatment, prescription drug use, mental health stigma, child mental health
MeSH terms
Adolescent, Adult, Central Nervous System Stimulants, Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity, Attitude to Health, Child, Depression, Female, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Patient Acceptance of Health Care, Practice Patterns, Physicians', Population Surveillance, Public Opinion, Queensland

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