Stigma by association

Psychological factors in relatives of people with mental illness

ÖSTMAN, MARGARETA
KJELLIN, LARS

MARGARETA ÖSTMAN, Dr Med Sc, Division of Psychiatry, University of Lund; LARS KJELLIN, Dr Med Sc, Psychiatric Research Centre, Örebro, Sweden

Correspondence: Dr Margareta Östman, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Division of Psychiatry, University Hospital SE-221 85 Lund, Sweden. Tel: 46 173849; fax: 46 173884; e-mail: [email protected]

(First received 24 April 2002, final revision 1 August 2002, accepted 1 August 2002)

British Journal of Psychiatry 181:p 494-498, December 2002.

Background

Stigma affects not only people with mental illnesses, but their families as well. Understanding how stigma affects family members in terms of both their psychological response to the ill person and their contacts with psychiatric services will improve interactions with the family.

Aims

To investigate factors of psychological significance related to stigma of the relatives.

Method

In a Swedish multi-centre study, 162 relatives of patients in acute psychiatric wards following both voluntary and compulsory admissions were interviewed concerning psychological factors related to stigma.

Results

A majority of relatives experienced psychological factors of stigma by association. Eighteen per cent of the relatives had at times thought that the patient would be better off dead, and 10% had experienced suicidal thoughts. Stigma by association was greater in relatives experiencing mental health problems of their own, and was unaffected by patient background characteristics.

Conclusions

Interventions are needed to reduce the negative effects of psychological factors related to stigma by association in relatives of people with mental illness.

Declaration of interest

The study was supported by grants from the Vardal Foundation, Sweden (V2001 141).