Stigma Measures

Measures developed by our group

The first two INDIGO studies used a newly constructed measure called the Discrimination and Stigma Scale (DISC-12) which is based upon the most frequent and most important aspects of stigma and discrimination reported directly by people with mental health conditions.

Since then the INDIGO team developed a short version of the DISC, the DISCUS. On this website we also make available all the free-to-use measures and resources for research on mental health-related discrimination and stigma developed through other stigma-related projects.

Evaluation of the Time to Change national anti-stigma programme 2008-11. Funded by Big Lottery, Comic Relief and Department of Health (Measures: CODA, MAKS and RIBS)

Stigma and discrimination Programme to Promote Healthcare Access and Social Inclusion: Research Evaluation (SAPPHIRE). Funded by National Institute for Health Research (Department of Health) (Measures: BACE, MICA, QUAD and the CORAL decision aid)

Understanding the relationship between stigma and self-esteem; a mixed methods study investigating stigma responses, vulnerability and resilience factors, awarded 2019. London Interdisciplinary Social Science Doctoral Training Programme PhD studentship awarded to Lauren Armstrong (Measure: DAPR)

BACE (Barriers to Accessing Care Evaluation)

BACE measures barriers to accessing mental health care. It asks about 30 different barriers to care, and has a special focus on stigma-related barriers.

CODA (Costs of Discrimination Assessment)

CODA has been developed to measure the economic costs than can arise due to the stigma and discrimination which people with mental health problems often face.

DISC & DISCUS (Discrimination and Stigma Scales)

DISC and DISCUS are interview-based scales which measure experiences of mental health-related discrimination in key areas of everyday life.

RIBS (Reported and Intended Behaviour Scale)

RIBS has been designed to assess and track mental health related behavioural discrimination among the general public.

MAKS (Mental Illness Knowledge Schedule)

MAKS was developed to measure mental health-related knowledge, assessesing and tracking stigma-related mental health knowledge among the general public.

MICA-2 (Mental Illness: Clinicians’ Attitudes Scale)

MICA-2 was created for use with medical students. It has 16 questions and has been widely used around the world.

MICA-4 (Mental Illness: Clinicians’ Attitudes Scale)

An amended version, MICA-4, was validated with a sample of nursing students and may be suitable for staff and students from a wide range of health professions.

QUAD (Questionnaire on Anticipated Discrimination)

QUAD measures anticipated discrimination. It asks people how much they personally anticipate experiencing mental health-related discrimination across 14 areas of life.

Other Stigma measures available

ECI (Experience of Caregiving Inventory)

The ECI scale is a self-report measure of caregiving, covering a broad range of experiences, that easy to administer, acceptable to respondents, and with solid construct as well as face validity. Measure, Key Paper, Scoring and Manual are available.

DAPR (Discrimination and Prejudice Responses Scale)

The aims of this study were to develop and psychometrically evaluate a new stigma responses questionnaire that can be used by individuals with different types of stigmatised characteristics: the Discrimination and Prejudice Responses Scale (DAPR). For any scoring information regarding the scale, please contact Katharine Rimes at katharine.rimes@plymouth.ac.uk

Please follow these steps to gain access to the scales:

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1. Register

Complete our short registration via Survey Monkey: click here to access the survey.

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2. Password

Once you submit the survey, do not close the window as a password will pop up on your screen. Use it to then access the tools, key papers, manuals and translations.

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3. Do not change

Please do not change or modify the questionnaires in any way.

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4. Cite the original paper

If you use or publish about the tools, or their translations, please include full reference to the key paper describing the measure (e.g. in the footer).

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5. No third party

Do not pass the original or translated measures to a third party. Instead, please direct them to this website.

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6. Technical issues

Please contact Prof Claire Henderson (claire.1.henderson@kcl.ac.uk) if you have any questions regarding the scales.

Conditions of Use

The measures developed by our group are freely available for you if you work or study in a university or health setting. Otherwise, to discuss access please contact Prof Claire Henderson at claire.1.henderson@kcl.ac.uk or Dr Sara Evans-Lacko at s.evans-lacko@lse.ac.uk.

For Translations

We invite you to translate our measures for use in stigma reducing programmes in your local context, so we can all end stigma and discrimination in mental health together.

For translations, please follow these steps:

Translations into different languages should be done using Back Translation (as detailed in the ).
Include the copyright information in the footer of the scale.
Any translated versions(s) must be made available to others who wish to use them. Send your translated versions to Prof Claire Henderson (claire.1.henderson@kcl.ac.uk)
No financial charge may be made for your version of the scales or guides.