This study explored views of 566 Italian psychology students about schizophrenia. The most frequently cited causes were psychological traumas (68 %) and heredity (54 %). Thirty-three percent of students firmly believed that people with the condition could recover. Reporting heredity among the causes, and identifying schizophrenia were both associated with prognostic pessimism, greater confidence in pharmacological treatments and lower confidence in psychological treatments. Schizophrenia labeling was also associated with higher perception of unpredictability and dangerousness. Compared to first year students, fourth/fifth year students more frequently reported heredity among the causes, and were more pessimistic about schizophrenia recovery. Stigma topics should be included in future psychologists' education.
Keywords: Causal explanations; Diagnostic labeling; Psychology students; Schizophrenia; Stigma.