The reliability and validity of measurement of expressed emotion in family members with schizophrenia

Document Type

Article

Department

School of Nursing and Midwifery, Pakistan

Abstract

The aim of this study is to test the reliability and validity of measurement of expressed emotion in Chinese culture. A convenience sample of relatives was selected from Beijing Anding Hospital during December 1998 to February 1999. Fifty-one family members who lived with schizophrenic patients more than three months before admission were interviewed within the first week of the patient’s hospitalization. They were interviewed by Five Minutes Interview (FMI) which was conducted along the lines of the Five Minute Speech Sample (FMSS) proposed by Magana, et al (1986), and asked to fill Family Attitude Scale (FAS) and Adjective Checklist (ACL).Fifteen (29.4%) relatives were judged to be high EE critical, and 7 (13.7%) relatives were judged to be high EE EOI. The brief interview proved sensitive in detecting expressed emotion in the dimensions used in many studies in European cultures. However, as there was no demonstrated relationship between the interview data and the quantitative instruments, further research is recommended to explore the culture issues which may be operating in these Chinese families. The results showed that the FAS and the ACL had a significant correlation between, but no statistically significant relationship with the FMI. As the FAS and the ACL proved internally consistent and compared favorably with other studies, it may be measuring elements of the family emotional climate which differs to those exposed by the brief EE interview.

Comments

This work was published before the author joined Aga Khan University.

Publication (Name of Journal)

Chinese Journal of Nursing

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