Social distance in Lithuanian psychology and social work students and professionals.

Purpose: This cross-sectional study aimed to compare desire for social distance from people with mental illness in the disciplines of social work and psychology, and among students and professionals having different professional experience.

Methods: 948 respondents (715 students and 233 professionals) from Lithuanian educational and mental health-care institutions participated in an anonymous survey. Social distance was measured using Lithuanian Social Distance Scale which was created for this study.