Fig. 2

Percentage distribution of ratings indicating negative attitudes (dichotomized yes/no) given by doctors (n = 638) for the APS statements [comparisons with medical students (n = 511) were performed only for statements which pertained to both questionnaire versions (Fisher’s exact test: *p < 0.05; **p < 0.01); % are given for significant comparisons]. AP1) Psychiatry is a rapidly expanding frontier of medicine; AP2) Psychiatrists make less money than other specialists; AP3) Psychiatry is not intellectually challenging; AP4) Psychiatry is unscientific; AP5) Psychiatry is not a genuine, valid branch of medicine; AP6) Psychiatry is not evidence-based; BP1) Patients should be treated in specialized facilities; BP2) Patients should not be treated in general hospitals; BP3) Psychiatrists have too much power over their patients; BP4) Treatments are not as effective as in other branches of medicine; BP5) Most who receive treatments do not find them helpful; BP6) Psychiatric units/wards are little more than prisons; BP7) Psychiatrists can do very little for their patients; CP1) Most psychiatrists are not good role models for medical students; CP2) Psychiatrists are not attentive enough to physiology; CP3) Psychiatrists are difficult to talk to; CP4) Psychiatrists are not clear, logical thinkers; CP5) Psychiatry is filled with people whose medical skills are of low quality; DP1) Many students are not interested in pursuing psychiatry as a career; DP2) Colleagues generally do not speak well of psychiatry; DP3) I would not encourage a bright student to enter psychiatry; DP4) Psychiatry has low prestige; DP5) Students are attracted to psychiatry because of their own personal problems; DP6) Students who cannot get into other specialties enter psychiatry; DP7) Entering Psychiatry is a waste of a medical education; EP1) Psychiatric patients are emotionally draining; EP2) Psychiatric patients are not highly appreciative of the care they receive; EP3) Psychiatric patients are often less interesting to work with than other patients; EP4) Working with psychiatric patients is not rewarding; EP5) Psychiatric illnesses do not deserve as much attention as physical illnesses; FP1) Psychiatric training is not of the highest quality; FP2) Students do not think their psychiatric training has been valuable; FP3) Psychiatry is so vague and imprecise it cannot be taught effectively; FP4) Less time should be spent teaching psychiatry to medical students