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KNOWLEDGE: A POSSIBLE TOOL IN SHAPING MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS’ ATTITUDES TOWARDS HOMOSEXUALITY

Bojana Dunjić-Kostić ; Clinic for Psychiatry, Clinical Centre of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia
Maja Pantović ; Clinic for Psychiatry, Clinical Centre of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia
Vuk Vuković ; Clinic for Psychiatry, Clinical Centre of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia
Dunja Randjelović ; Special Hospital for Psychiatric Dissorders „Dr Laza Lazarevic“, Belgrade, Serbia
Sanja Totić-Poznanović ; Clinic for Psychiatry, Clinical Centre of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia
Aleksandar Damjanović ; Clinic for Psychiatry, Clinical Centre of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia
Miroslava Jašović-Gašić ; Clinic for Psychiatry, Clinical Centre of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia
Maja Ivković ; Clinic for Psychiatry, Clinical Centre of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia

Sažetak

Background: The attitudes of medical professionals towards homosexuals can influence their willingness to provide these
individuals with medical help. The study evaluated the medical professionals’ knowledge about homosexuality and their attitudes
towards it.
Subjects and methods: The sample consisted of 177 participants (physicians n=79 and students n=98). The study respondents
anonymously completed three questionnaires (socio-demographic questionnaire, the questionnaire on knowledge, and the
questionnaire on attitudes towards homosexuals).
Results: Male and religious participants showed a lower level of knowledge and a greater tendency to stigmatize. Furthermore,
the subjects who knew more about homosexuality tended to hold less stigmatizing attitude. Age group, specialty (psychiatry,
gynecology, internal medicine and surgery), and student’s/physician’s status had no effect on stigmatization. The study showed that
the final year students/ residents had more knowledge than the second year students/specialists did. Knowledge had significant
negative predictive effect on attitudes in the analyzed predictive model.
Conclusions: To our knowledge, this has been the first study in Serbia and Eastern Europe, which provides information on
knowledge and attitudes of health professionals towards homosexuality. We would like to point out the degree of knowledge on
homosexuality as a possible, but not exclusive tool in shaping the attitudes towards homosexuals and reducing stigmatization.
However, regardless of the personal attitude, knowledge and variable acceptance of the homosexuals’ rights, medical professionals’
main task is to resist discriminative behavior and provide professional medical help to both homosexual and heterosexual patients.

Ključne riječi

homosexuality; attitudes; knowledge; physicians; students

Hrčak ID:

106216

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/106216

Datum izdavanja:

24.6.2012.

Posjeta: 3.976 *