Psychiatric Bulletin (2008) 32: 419-422. doi: 10.1192/pb.bp.107.018515
© 2008 The Royal College of Psychiatrists
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Destigmatising schizophrenia: does changing terminology reduce negative attitudes?

David Kingdon, Professor of Mental Health Care Delivery

*University of Southampton, Royal South Hants Hospital, Southampton SO14 0YG, email: dgk{at}soton.ac.uk

Selvarej Vincent, Lecturer, Sylvia Vincent, Research Assistant and Yoshihiro Kinoshita, PhD Student

University of Southampton

Douglas Turkington, Professor of Psychosocial Psychiatry

University of Newcastle, Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle

Declaration of interest

None. National Health Service research and development support funding.

AIMS AND METHOD

Health promotion campaigns using current terminology have had limited success in reducing stigma to schizophrenia. Terminology and subgroups based on historical precedent, clinical experience and psychosocial research have been developed to provide an alternative to existing terminology, and the attitudes to schizophrenia and alternative terminology of a sample of medical students (n=241) were compared.

RESULTS

Overall attitudes were significantly less negative with the alternatives. The students were less negative about the potential for recovery in relation to all the subgroups than for schizophrenia. Concerns about dangerousness were also less prominent with the exception of the drug-related group.

CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS

Subgroups and alternative terminology should be further explored in programmes to destigmatise schizophrenia.




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