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Relatives' expressed emotion and non-verbal signs of subclinical psychopathology in schizophrenic patients

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Stephanie M. Woo ,
Michael J. Goldstein  and
Keith H. Nuechterlein
Stephanie M. Woo*
Affiliation:
UCLA Family Project, Department of Psychology
Michael J. Goldstein
Affiliation:
UCLA Family Project, Department of Psychology
Keith H. Nuechterlein
Affiliation:
UCLA, Neuropsychiatric Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, California, USA
*
S. M. Woo, UCLA Department of Psychology, 405 Hilgard Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA
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Abstract

Background

Previous research has generally found that variations in relatives' affective attitudes (expressed emotion; EE) towards a schizophrenic family member could not be accounted for by differences in the severity or form of the patient's symptomatology. These findings have been based on clinicians' ratings of psychopathology in patients.

Method

To approach the question from a different perspective, videotaped interactions between a patient and family members, obtained four to five weeks after hospital discharge, were coded for subclinical signs of psychopathology expressed by the patient. The Behavioral Subclinical Rating Scale (BSRS) was developed to compare subclinical levels of non-verbal and paralinguistic symptoms expressed by patients from both high- and low-EE families.

Results

Highly significant differences were found in the BSRS data. Patients from high-EE families showed more hostile and unusual behaviour with relatives than those from low-EE homes, who, in contrast, showed more anxious behaviour.

Conclusion

These data suggest that a complex transactional model is necessary to understand how family attitudes evolve during the course of a relatives' schizophrenic disorder.

Type
Papers
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 170 , Issue 1 , January 1997 , pp. 58 - 61
Copyright
Copyright © 1997 The Royal College of Psychiatrists 

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