Psychological report^, 1977, 41, 1194. @ Psychological Reports 1977
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PSYCHIATRIC PATIENTS'
ATTITUDES TOWARD MENTAL ILLNESS AND AlTITUDES OF DEPENDENCE1 JAMES K. MORRISON, JOHNEL D. BUSHELL, GREGORY D. HANSON, JANET R. FENTIMAN, A N D SUSAN HOLDRIDGE-CRANE Capital District Psychiairic Center, Albany, N . Y . Although opponents of the medical model have theorized that acceptance of a medical paradigm by psychiatric patients often ensures passive-dependent attitudes, to date no research has clearly defined this relationship. The present study was designed ro assess the validity of this theorized relationship by means of two instruments, recently developed to measure attitudes toward mental illness and attitudes of dependence. The subjects were 58 psychiatric out-patients, 38 of whom had been hospitalized at least once for psychiatric reasons. The clients were relatively young ( M = 35.2 yr.), mostly female ( n = 3 2 ) , and with limited education ( M = 12.6 yr.). Three clinicians ( a clinical psychologist and two psychiatric social workers) at a community mental health center administered two questionnaires to their clients. The Client Attitude Questionnaire is a reliable ( r = .go), revised version of the original scale ( 2 ) . This 20-item instrument determines respondents' attitudes toward mental illness which reflect either a psychosocial or a medical model. The Client Independence Questionnaire is a reliable ( r = . 7 8 ) , 16-item attitude measure determining a client's dependence on, or independence from, psychiatric staff ( 3 ) . Scores significantly cor.01) with therapists' ratings of clients' dependence.' relate ( r = .62, p The Pearson product-moment correlation of scores of these measures was significant ( r = .GO, p < .01), suggesting a strong relationship between medical model orientation and attitudes of dependence on the one hand, and psychosocial orientation and attitudes of independence on the other. Partial correlations indicated that of all the variables studied (sex, age, years of formal education, number of hospitalizations, and average length of each hospitalization) only years of formal education appeared to contribute significantly to the correlation of clients' scores on these measures. Specifically, when the effect of years of formal education was held constant, the relationship between the two sets of scores .05). Furthermore years of formal education significantwas almost halved ( r = .34, p ly and negatively correlate with scores for clients' attitudes ( r = -.54, p .01) and .01), indicating that with increased formal education independence ( 7 = -.79, p clients tend to adopt the more popular medical paradigm, as well as attitudes of dependence c n psychiatric staff. These results suggest that, at least for psychiatric outpatients, a psychosocial approach to psychiatric problems may foster clients' independence more than a medical approach. Thus seminars ( I ) , designed to educate clients away from the medical model orientation often learned in out school and hospital systems, may facilitate the independent role functioning of clients in the community.
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PSYCHIATRIC PATIENTS'
ATTITUDES TOWARD MENTAL ILLNESS AND AlTITUDES OF DEPENDENCE1 JAMES K. MORRISON, JOHNEL D. BUSHELL, GREGORY D. HANSON, JANET R. FENTIMAN, A N D SUSAN HOLDRIDGE-CRANE Capital District Psychiairic Center, Albany, N . Y . Although opponents of the medical model have theorized that acceptance of a medical paradigm by psychiatric patients often ensures passive-dependent attitudes, to date no research has clearly defined this relationship. The present study was designed ro assess the validity of this theorized relationship by means of two instruments, recently developed to measure attitudes toward mental illness and attitudes of dependence. The subjects were 58 psychiatric out-patients, 38 of whom had been hospitalized at least once for psychiatric reasons. The clients were relatively young ( M = 35.2 yr.), mostly female ( n = 3 2 ) , and with limited education ( M = 12.6 yr.). Three clinicians ( a clinical psychologist and two psychiatric social workers) at a community mental health center administered two questionnaires to their clients. The Client Attitude Questionnaire is a reliable ( r = .go), revised version of the original scale ( 2 ) . This 20-item instrument determines respondents' attitudes toward mental illness which reflect either a psychosocial or a medical model. The Client Independence Questionnaire is a reliable ( r = . 7 8 ) , 16-item attitude measure determining a client's dependence on, or independence from, psychiatric staff ( 3 ) . Scores significantly cor.01) with therapists' ratings of clients' dependence.' relate ( r = .62, p The Pearson product-moment correlation of scores of these measures was significant ( r = .GO, p < .01), suggesting a strong relationship between medical model orientation and attitudes of dependence on the one hand, and psychosocial orientation and attitudes of independence on the other. Partial correlations indicated that of all the variables studied (sex, age, years of formal education, number of hospitalizations, and average length of each hospitalization) only years of formal education appeared to contribute significantly to the correlation of clients' scores on these measures. Specifically, when the effect of years of formal education was held constant, the relationship between the two sets of scores .05). Furthermore years of formal education significantwas almost halved ( r = .34, p ly and negatively correlate with scores for clients' attitudes ( r = -.54, p .01) and .01), indicating that with increased formal education independence ( 7 = -.79, p clients tend to adopt the more popular medical paradigm, as well as attitudes of dependence c n psychiatric staff. These results suggest that, at least for psychiatric outpatients, a psychosocial approach to psychiatric problems may foster clients' independence more than a medical approach. Thus seminars ( I ) , designed to educate clients away from the medical model orientation often learned in out school and hospital systems, may facilitate the independent role functioning of clients in the community.
