Perceived social stigma, self-concept, and self-stigmatization of patient with schizophrenia

The advent of community-based mental health care in Greece emphasized clinic tans' need to understand patients' attitudes and their experience of their illness A 42-item self-administered questionnaire (Self-Sumatization Questionnaire) with flexible format was designed and administered to 150 outpatients with schizophrenia who fulfilled the criteria for Inclusion in the vocational rehabilitation program where the study took place The patients participated voluntarily Multivanate regression models were applied to each item to assess the degree of patients' self-stuunatization experience as well as the effect of potential factors such as age, sex, psychopathologic condition. hospitalization, and duration of illness The options selected by the patients revealed stigmatized attitudes in most items The odds of selecting these options were mainly influenced by the severity of the patients' psychopathologic condition and the duration of illness and less by sex, age, and hospitalization (C) 2010 Elsevier Inc All rights reserved