Experience of social stigma by people with schizophrenia in Hong Kong

BackgroundResearch on stigma often focuses on general public attitudes and overlooks patients' subjective experiences of everyday stigma arising from significant others.AimsTo document and compare the interpersonal experiences of stigma in patients with schizophrenia and patients with diabetes mellitus in Hong Kong.MethodFour focus groups were conducted to generate a self-report questionnaire. Data were collected from out-patients with schizophrenia (n=320) and diabetes (n=160).ResultsSignificantly more patients with schizophrenia (>40%) than diabetes (average 15%) experienced stigma from family members, partners, friends and colleagues. Over 50% anticipated stigma and about 55% concealed their illness. Dysphoria occurred in over half.ConclusionsInterpersonal (especially intrafamilial) stigma was pervasive, hard to avoid and devastating to patients with schizophrenia. Family support had to be realised rather than assumed, despite the emphasis on relationship bonds in Chinese society Programmes that build the family as a rehabilitative resource should start early to reduce the development and adverse impacts of stigma.

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Insight into the Psychosocial Aspects of Huntington's Disease in Chinese Society

The International Journal of Psychiatry in Medicine ◽

10.2190/lfg9-u7gr-64en-6cep ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 32 (3) ◽

pp. 305-310 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Tak Yu Leung ◽

Chi Ming Leung

Keyword(s):

Hong Kong ◽

Huntington's Disease ◽

Huntington’S Disease ◽

Social Stigma ◽

Genetic Defect ◽

Psychosocial Aspects ◽

Historical Background ◽

Chinese Society ◽

Chinese Families ◽

Local Experience

Objective: To review the psychosocial aspects of Chinese families with Huntington's disease (HD) in Hong Kong. Method: The psychosocial aspects of five Chinese families in Hong Kong were studied with in-depth interviews and detailed analysis of case records. Results: Patients with HD are found to suffer from certain specific psychosocial adversities, including marital disharmony, social stigma and increased suicidal risk in those with relatively well-preserved cognitive function. A low request rate for presymptomatic testing for HD is also observed among these cases. Conclusions: Though the genetic defect in HD is universal and cuts across cultures, the problems faced by these patients and their families are never the same. Despite limited local experience due to a much lower prevalence, Chinese HD patients in Hong Kong are found to have specific needs that emerge from their ethno-historical background.

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Children with cerebral palsy: Family and parent demographic characteristics and family strengths in Greece and Italy

Journal of Health Psychology ◽

10.1177/1359105319900276 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 135910531990027

Author(s):

Assimina Tsibidaki

Keyword(s):

Cerebral Palsy ◽

Data Collection ◽

Well Being ◽

Demographic Characteristics ◽

Self Report ◽

Family Strengths ◽

Biological Child ◽

The Family ◽

Children With Cerebral Palsy ◽

High Sense

The study focuses on families raising a child with cerebral palsy to investigate family strengths and their association with family and parent demographic characteristics in Greece and Italy. Participants were 120 parents raising a biological child with cerebral palsy. Data collection used a self-report questionnaire and the Family Strengths Inventory. According to the findings, families share a high sense of family strengths, which is mainly represented in the high sense of ‘pride’ and ‘accord’. In addition, demographic characteristics seem to be important predictors of well-being and strengthen parents and families raising a child with cerebral palsy.

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Work-Related Subjective Experiences Among Community Residents with Schizophrenia or Schizoaffective Disorder

Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry ◽

10.1080/j.1440-1614.2005.01567.x ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 39 (4) ◽

pp. 288-299 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Geoff Waghorn ◽

David Chant ◽

Robert King

Keyword(s):

Psychometric Properties ◽

Schizoaffective Disorder ◽

Repeated Measures ◽

Supported Employment ◽

Self Report ◽

Urban Residents ◽

Subjective Experiences ◽

Work Related ◽

Community Residents ◽

Test Retest Reliability

Objective: To develop a self-report scale of subjective experiences of illness perceived to impact on employment functioning, as an alternative to a diagnostic perspective, for anticipating the vocational assistance needs of people with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorders. Method: A repeated measures pilot study (n1 = 26, n2 = 21) of community residents with schizophrenia identified a set of work-related subjective experiences perceived to impact on employment functioning. Items with the best psychometric properties were applied in a 12 month longitudinal survey of urban residents with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder (n1 = 104; n2 = 94; n3 = 94). Results: Construct validity, factor structure, responsiveness, internal consistency, stability, and criterion validity investigations produced favourable results. Work-related subjective experiences provide information about the intersection of the person, the disorder, and expectations of employment functioning, which suggest new opportunities for vocational professionals to explore and discuss individual assistance needs. Conclusion: Further psychometric investigations of test-retest reliability, discriminant and predictive validity, and research applications in supported employment and vocational rehabilitation, are recommended. Subject to adequate psychometric properties, the new measure promises to facilitate exploring: individuals' specific subjective experiences; how each is perceived to contribute to employment restrictions; and the corresponding implications for specialized treatment, vocational interventions and workplace accommodations.

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Hong Kong's Stunted Political Party System

The China Quarterly ◽

10.1017/s0009443902000591 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 172 ◽

pp. 1010-1028 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Lau Siu-kai ◽

Kuan Hsin-chi

Keyword(s):

Hong Kong ◽

Political Parties ◽

Political Party ◽

Party System ◽

Public Attitudes ◽

Political Class ◽

Business Elites ◽

British Colony ◽

Political Party System ◽

Representation Of Interests

Hong Kong's political parties are now in decline after the return of the former British colony to China. The decline of political parties stands out in stark relief in a context featuring “Hong Kong people governing Hong Kong” and gradual democratization. A major reason for the decline is the stunted political party system of Hong Kong. Prominent in that stunted system is the absence of a ruling party. The stunted party system is primarily the result of Beijing's antipathy towards party politics in Hong Kong, which in turn discourages party formation by the Hong Kong government and the conservative elites. The lack of incentives for the business elites to organize political parties to protect their interests is another major reason. The stunted party system has produced serious adverse consequences for the governance of Hong Kong, representation of interests, public attitudes towards the political class and the further democratization of the territory.

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#3083 Fibromyalgia and myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS): an interoceptive predictive coding model of pain and fatigue expression

Journal of Neurology Neurosurgery & Psychiatry ◽

10.1136/jnnp-2021-bnpa.10 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 92 (8) ◽

pp. A3.3-A4

Author(s):

Harriet Sharp ◽

Kristy Themelis ◽

Marisa Amato ◽

Andrew Barritt ◽

Kevin Davies ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Prediction Error ◽

Predictive Coding ◽

Chronic Fatigue ◽

Self Report ◽

Subjective Experiences ◽

Double Blind ◽

Pain Thresholds ◽

Pressure Pain Thresholds ◽

Interoceptive Accuracy ◽

Bodily States

IntroductionThe aetiology and pathophysiology of fibromyalgia and ME/CFS are poorly characterised but altered inflammatory, autonomic and interoceptive processes have been implicated. Interoception has been conceptualised as a predictive coding process; where top-down prediction signals compare to bottom-up afferents, resulting in prediction error signals indicating mismatch between expected and actual bodily states. Chronic dyshomeostasis and elevated interoceptive prediction error signals have been theorised to contribute to the expression of pain and fatigue in fibromyalgia and ME/CFS.Objectives/AimsTo investigate how altered interoception and prediction error relates to baseline expression of pain and fatigue in fibromyalgia and ME/CFS and in response to an inflammatory challenge.MethodsSixty-five patients with fibromyalgia and/or ME/CFS diagnosis and 26 matched controls underwent baseline assessment: self-report questionnaires assessing subjective pain and fatigue and objective measurements of pressure-pain thresholds. Participants received injections of typhoid (inflammatory challenge) or saline (placebo) in a randomised, double-blind, crossover design, then completed heartbeat tracking task (assessing interoceptive accuracy). Porges Body Questionnaire assessed interoceptive sensibility. Interoceptive prediction error (IPE) was calculated as discrepancy between objective accuracy and subjective sensibility.ResultsPatients with fibromyalgia and ME/CFS had significantly higher IPE (suggesting tendency to over-estimate interoceptive ability) and interoceptive sensibility, despite no differences in interoceptive accuracy. IPE and sensibility correlated positively with all self-report fatigue and pain measures, and negatively with pain thresholds. Following inflammatory challenge, IPE correlated negatively with the mismatch between subjective and objective measures of pain induced by inflammation.ConclusionsThis is the first study to reveal altered interoception processes in patients with fibromyalgia and ME/CFS, who are known to have dysregulated autonomic function. Notably, we found elevated IPE in patients, correlating with their subjective experiences of pain and fatigue. We hypothesise a predictive coding model, where mismatch between expected and actual internal bodily states (linked to autonomic dysregulation) results in prediction error signalling which could be metacognitively interpreted as chronic pain and fatigue. Our results demonstrate potential for further exploration of interoceptive processing in patients with fibromyalgia and ME/CFS, aiding understanding of these poorly defined conditions and providing potential new targets for diagnostic and therapeutic intervention.

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Multifamily Group Therapy: Impact on Family Functioning and Child Behavior

Families in Society The Journal of Contemporary Social Services ◽

10.1606/1044-3894.1796 ◽

1998 ◽

Vol 79 (1) ◽

pp. 32-44 ◽

Cited By ~ 22

Author(s):

William Meezan ◽

Maura O'Keefe

Keyword(s):

Family Therapy ◽

Group Therapy ◽

Social Competence ◽

Family Functioning ◽

Parental Support ◽

Self Report ◽

Traditional Family ◽

End Of Treatment ◽

The Family ◽

Treatment Changes

The authors compare the effectiveness of multifamily group therapy (MFGT) with traditional family therapy with abusive and neglectful caregivers and their children. Positive changes in the family functioning of the MFGT group occurred in areas critical to the reduction of child abuse and neglect, whereas changes in the family functioning of those in traditional family therapy occurred only in the area of parental support. The MFGT group children became significantly more assertive and less submissive according to their self-report and, according to their caregivers, showed significantly fewer overall behavior problems and greater social competence at the end of treatment. Changes in the children in the comparison group were not self-reported and did not occur in the area of social competence. These positive findings argue that agencies should consider adopting this modality in the treatment of this population and that it should be included as a treatment option in family-centered child welfare services.

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