Changing MSW students' attitudes towards the severely mentally ill

The effect of an intervention to change graduate MSW students' attitudes towards the severely mentally ill was investigated. Positive changes in attitude were observed for the students who participated in the intervention. Attitude scores of students in the comparison group remained the same. The encouraging findings of this study suggest that the negative attitudes of social work students towards this population can be improved. Implications for future research and training of professionals working with the severely mentally ill are discussed.