Stigma, insight and social anxiety in first episode patients with psychosis

Abstract

Introduction People with schizophrenia are considered to be within the most stigmatized social groups. Accurate and efficient detection of stigma and its correlates is essential in patients with psychosis. Objectives The purpose of this study was to assess illness insight, stigma, social anxiety and quality of life in patients with a first episode of psychosis and their possible correlations Methods The sample of this study consisted of 90 patients with a first episode of psychosis that fulfilled inclusion and exclusion criteria. Tools used for the purpose of this study were Schedule for the assessment of insight-Expanded version, Internalized Stigma for Mental Illness Scale, World Health Organization Quality of Life Assessment - Greek version, Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale - Greek version. Data were collected and analyzed with SPSS v26. Results The study group had good insight (SAI-E score: 20.33±4.449), medium to high stigma values (ISMI score 50.93±7.854), a good enough quality of life (WHOQOL-BREF score: 86.08±10.010) and low levels of social anxiety (LSAS-Gr Fear score: 3.26±8.653; Anxiety score: 2,93±7,596). The results of this study show significant at the 0.01 level 2-tailed correlations as such: (i) a positive and significant relationship between ISMI and LSAS-Gr, (ii) a negative and significant relationship between ISMI and WHOQOL-BREF, and (iii) a negative and moderate relationship between WHOQOL-BREF and LSAS-Gr. Conclusions We report medium to high stigma levels, good insight and a good enough quality of life in a sample of first-episode patients with psychosis. Disclosure No significant relationships.

Keywords

• Stigma
• insight
• social anxiety
• First episode psychosis