Premium
Subjective and external assessments of quality of life in schizophrenia: relationship to insight
Author(s) -
Doyle M.,
Flanagan S.,
Browne S.,
Clarke M.,
Lydon D.,
Larkin C.,
O'Callaghan E.
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
acta psychiatrica scandinavica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.849
H-Index - 146
eISSN - 1600-0447
pISSN - 0001-690X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1600-0447.1999.tb00994.x
Subject(s) - quality of life (healthcare) , schizophrenia (object oriented programming) , psychology , clinical psychology , scale (ratio) , correlation , concurrent validity , psychometrics , psychiatry , psychotherapist , physics , geometry , mathematics , quantum mechanics , internal consistency
Objective: This study assessed the manner in which insight influenced schizophrenic patients’ evaluation of their objective life conditions and the concurrent validity between patients’ and clinicians’ assessments of patients’ global quality of life. Method: Forty out‐patients who fulfilled DSM‐III‐R criteria for schizophrenia were independently interviewed using the Lancashire Quality of Life Profile and the Standard of Living Interview. Insight was assessed using a self‐report questionnaire, the Insight Scale. Results: For insightful patients there was a significant but modest correlation between objective and subjective indicators of quality of life. Likewise, a significant correlation between subjective and external evaluations of global quality of life was limited to those individuals who had good insight. Conclusion: Diminished insight may limit the usefulness of the self‐report methodology for assessing quality of life for some individuals with schizophrenia.