[Evaluation of a Public Campaign on Mental Disorders - Results from "psychenet"]

Objective: From 2011 to 2014, an information and awareness campaign was conducted in the framework of psychenet - Hamburg network for mental health. Evaluation is focused on two aspects: First, the reach of the campaign is examined. Second, effects of the campaign's key messages on public attitudes concerning mental disorders are analyzed. Methods: Analyses are based on two representative telephone surveys, conducted in Hamburg (intervention region) and Munich (control region) in 2011 prior (N = 2014) and 2014 post-campaign (N = 2006). Respondents were asked about their awareness of the psychenet campaign and to state their agreement or disagreement regarding attitudes and beliefs about mental disorders. Results: 7.3 % (74 of 1005) of the respondents from Hamburg were aware of psychenet. Compared to the other respondents, this subgroup displayed a stronger accordance with the campaign's key messages. However, regarding the total population over the course of time, differences in attitudes towards mental disorders were minor. Conclusion: Information and awareness campaigns seem to have minor effects on public attitudes towards mental disorders. Effects of specific campaign messages need to be examined more systematically.