The Relationship between Expressed Emotion of Relatives andIntellectual Disability with Psychiatric Symptoms

• Main Authors: Li-Chieh Chang, 張吏頡
• Other Authors: Wai-Cheong Carl Tam
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2009
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/18606910069896994979

碩士 === 中原大學 === 心理學研究所 === 97 === Background and purpose: Expressed Emotion (EE) is a measurement of the emotional attitudes that a relative holds toward a particular family member, which is a reliable and dimensional concept. It includes Emotion Overinvolvement (EOI) and Critical Comments (CC). Many studies support a significant correlation between EE and relapse of schizophrenia, anxiety disorder and mood disorder. EE is an important clinical indicator of the psychosocial factor. It can effectually predict the relapse of mental disorder, and be an intervention focus in family therapy. Recent research also includes other factors such as attributions, culture, and stigma, and expands EE’s applicability into groups with different diagnoses. Individuals with intellectual disability (or mental retardation) are commly comorbid with psychiatric symptoms. Bidirectional effect may exist between the EE of the families and behavior problems of the those with intellectual disability. The purpose of this research is to investagate the relationship between the relatives’ EE and intellectual disability with psychiatric symptoms. Other research variables include relatives’ attribution toward the intellectual disability, family stigma, and care anxiety. Method: This is a cross-sectional correlation study. The participants were recruited purposefully from the relatives of individuals with intellectual disability in Northern Taiwan (N=117).They were administered the Family Questionnaire(FQ), Care Anxiety Scale, Family Stigma Questionnaire(FSQ), Attribution of Mental Retardation Questionnaire, and the Psychiatric Assessment Schedule for Adults with Developmental Disability Checklist (PAS-ADD Checklist). Linear regression and structural equation model (SEM) were applied as the method of statistical analysis in this study. Result: The effects of the families’ attribution toward the mental retardation (stability and controllability), family stigma (contamination) and care anxiety on the psychiatric symptoms of inviduals with the intellectual disability were mediated by expressed emotion (EE). The higher families’ EE, the higher was the score on PAS-ADD Checklist (p < .001). Family contamination could predict care anxiety(p < .05); the controllability attribution toward mental retardation affected EE via EOI, and stability attribution affects EE via CC. Base on the result of SEM, it suggested appropriate fit between the data and research model of this study〔χ2(38) =52.769, p > .05〕. Disscussion: There was a statistically significant correlation between the relatives’ expressed emotion and psychiatric symptoms of individuals with intellectual disability. Family stigma, attribution toward mental retardation, and care anxiety related closely with EE. They could be the factors of the EE attribution model.