Does Social Group Status Infl uence Social Distance in Relation to Depression?

It is widely assumed that Maori and non-Maori have disparate views of mental health. Using the mental health literacy framework, a survey questionnaire was mailed to a random sample of 500 people selected from both the General and Maori electoral rolls. A total of 205 completed questionnaires were received which included 115 from non-Maori and 90 from Maori. Participants were required to respond to a vignette describing a fi ctional character experiencing a major depressive disorder. Our fi ndings indicated no signifi cant differences between Maori and non-Maori respondents regarding problem identifi cation, quality of life impacted, social distance judgements, and the relationship between degree of familiarity with mental illness and desired social distance. Implications of these fi ndings are discussed in relation to destigmatisation of mental health campaigns in the public health fi eld.