PERSPECTIVES ON THE PSYCHIATRIC HOSPITAL OF SHKODRA: PERCEPTION OF NEARBY RESIDENTS

Abstract

For the last decades, environmental education has shed a light into how psychiatric hospitals resonate into the neighborhood, not only in what they add to the particular aesthetic of a neighborhood, but also what they add to the collective psyche of the neighborhood. According to public perception and quite intuitive conventions, the presence of a psychiatric hospital resonates in its surroundings. This study aims to analyze the perception of the Psychiatric Hospital of Shkodra by the residents of the neighborhood and understand better the community attitudes towards both the mental health and mental health facility. The focus of the study are the neighbors’ perceptions (N = 100), which are gathered and analyzed employing a quantitative approach through random sampling door-to-door surveys. By using questionnaires, it aims to determine the relation this built environment has with the people of the surrounding neighborhood. Presently, mental health is stigmatized, so the general perception of the environment is highly colored. However, this research aims to define the factors contributing to the attitudes, how they are tethered to the built environment and social components. Results of the analysis highlighted the relationship between facility characteristics and community attitudes towards mental health — to name a few, homeowners and residents who have lived longer in the neighborhood are more likely to perceive the facility as a factor decreasing property values; residents that had children at home tended to fully agree with the statement “There should be guards at the facility”; and respondents who found the facility ordinary preferred that the facility be situated in the outskirts of the city, not in the neighborhood. Finally, the study provides a baseline for future research into community participation, and Not-In-My-Backyard (NIMBY) attitudes towards the inclusion and exclusion of mental health facilities.