Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-q99xh Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-23T00:47:01.614Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Schizophrenia and family rituals: measuring family rituals among schizophrenics and “normals”

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 April 2020

MG Madianos  and
M Economou
MG Madianos
Affiliation:
Community Mental Health Center, Department of Psychiatry, University of Athens, 14 Delou Street, 16121 , Kessariani Athens, Greece
M Economou
Affiliation:
Community Mental Health Center, Department of Psychiatry, University of Athens, 14 Delou Street, 16121 , Kessariani Athens, Greece
Get access

Summary

Family rituals consisting of ceremonial acts, traditions and patterned interactions serve as a basis of communication, collective identity, and stabilizing relationships. Therefore, the measurement of rituals in a schizophrenic family is an objectification of the family's symbolic communication and integration. Based upon this, the relationship between family rituals practice in 138 families both with a schizophrenic member (71) and without (67) was examined by the use of an originally developed instrument, the “Family Rituals Scale” (FRS). The psychometric properties of this instrument were tested and proved to be reliable. Families with a schizophrenic member were less ritualizing than the “normal” families. The correlation between FRS scores and Global Assessment Scale scores in schizophrenic patients was negative (the higher the psychosocial functioning level, the lower FRS scores), which means a higher performance of family rituals. The effect of other factors on FRS scores and the therapeutic implications are discussed.

Keywords

family atmospherechronic psychotic patientssymbolic communicationfamily burden
Type
Original article
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 9 , Issue 1 , 1994 , pp. 45 - 51
Copyright
Copyright © Elsevier, Paris 1994

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Ackerman, N. Treating the Troubled Family. New York: Basic Books, 1966Google Scholar
American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. 3rd edition, Washington: APA Press, 1980Google Scholar
Bossard, JBoll, E. Rituals in Family living. University of Pennsylvania Press, Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1950Google Scholar
Bowen, M. The family as a unit study and treatment. Am J Orthopsychiatry 1960;31:40–60CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bowen, M. Family Therapy Practice. New York: Jason Aronson, 1978Google Scholar
Brown, GWMonck, EMCarstairs, GMWing, JK. Influence of family life on the course of schizophrenic illness. Br J Prey Soc Med 1962;16:55–68Google Scholar
Brown, GMBirley, JLTWing, JK. Influence of family life on the course of schizophrenic disorders. A replication. Br J Psychiatry 1972;121:241–58CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Danforth, L. The Death Rituals of Rural Greece. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1982Google Scholar
Endicott, JSpitzer, RFleiss, JCohen, J. The Global Assessment Scale: a procedure for measuring overall severity of psychiatric disturbance. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1975;33:766–771CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Falloon, IPederson, J. Family management in the prevention of morbidity of schizophrenia, adjustment of the family unit. Br J Psychiatry 1975;147:156–63CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fadden, GBebbington, PKuipers, L. The burden of care: the impact of functional psychiatric illness of the patient's family. Br J Psychiatry 1987;150:285–92CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ford, FHerrick, J. Family rules: family life styles. Am J Orthopsychiatry 1974;44:61–9CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Geertz, G. The Interpretation of Culture. New York: Basic Books, 1973Google Scholar
Hall, PBrockington, JEiseman, MMadianos, MMaj, M. Difficult to place psychiatric patients. Br Med J 198l;302:l150Google Scholar
Kantor, DLehr, W. Inside the Family: Toward a Theory of Family Process. New York: Harper and Row, 1975Google Scholar
Leff, JPVaughn, CE. Expressed Emotion in Families. New York: Guilford Press, 1975Google Scholar
Madianos, MStefanis, C. Developmental issues and intervention Strategies in a community mental health center in Greece.In: Hudolin, V ed. Social psychiatry. New York: Plenum Press, l974;283–90Google Scholar
Madianos, MVlachonikolis, JMadianou, DStefanis, C. Prevalence of psychological disorders in the Athens area: prediction of causal factors. Acta Psychiatr Scand 1985;71:479–87CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Madianos, MMadianou, DVlachonikolis, JStefanis, C. Attitudes towards mental illness in the Athens area: implications for community mental health intervention. Acta Psychiatr Scand 1987a;75:158–65CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Madianos, MGournas, GTomaras, VStefanis, C. Family atmosphere on the course of chronic schizophrenia treated in a community mental health center: a prospective longitudinal study.In: Stefanis, CRabavilas, A eds. Schizophrenia recent biosocial developments. New York: Human Sciences Press, 1987b;246–56Google Scholar
Madianos, MEconomou, M. Negative symptoms in schizophrenia: the effect of long-term community-based psychiatric intervention. Int J Ment Health 1988;17:22–34CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Madianos, MEconomou, M. The Family Rituals Scale. Athens: Social Psychiatry Unit, Department of Psychiatry, Universtiy of Athens, 1990Google Scholar
Madianos, MEconomou, MPapageorgiou, A. Clinical and therapeutic monitoring of psychotic patients in two Athenian boroughs: ten year operation of a model system.In: Third congress of World Association for Psychosocial Rehabilitation, Montreal, October, 1991Google Scholar
Madianos, MMadianou, D. The effects of long-term community care on relapse and adjustment of persons with chronic schizophrenia. Int J Ment Health 1992;21:37–49CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Minuchin, S. Families and Family Therapy. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1974Google Scholar
Mischler, EWaxler, N. Interaction in Families. New York: J Wiley, 1968Google Scholar
Norusis, M. SPSS/PC. Chicago: SPSS Inc. 1986Google Scholar
Nunnully, JC. Psychometric Theory. New York: McGraw Hill, 1967Google Scholar
Platt, S. The burden of psychiatric illness on the family: an evaluation of some rating scales. Psychol Med 1985;15:383–93CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Schene, AH. Objective and subjective dimensions of family burden. Towards an integrative approach. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol 1990;25:289–97CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Steinglass, PBennet, LWolin, SReiss, DThe Alcoholic Family. New York: Basic Books, 1987Google Scholar
Selvini Palazzoli, MBoscolo, LCecchin, G. Paradox and Counterparadox. Northvale, NJersey: Jason Aronson, 1985Google Scholar
Tomaras, VVlachonikolis, JMadianos, MStefanis, C. The effect of invidual psychosocial treatment on the family atmosphere of schizophrenic patients. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol 1989;23:256–61CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Turner, V. The Ritual Process: Structure and Anti-structure. Chicago: Aldine Publishing Co, 1969Google Scholar
Van Gennep, A. The Rites of Passage. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1960Google Scholar
Vaughn, CELeff, JP. The measurement of expressed emotion in the families of psychiatric patients. Br J Soc Clin Psychol 1976a;15:157–65CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vaughn, CE. Annotation: expressed emotion in family relationship. J Child Psychol Psychiatry 1989;30:13–22CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wolin, SJBennet, LNoonan, DL. Family rituals and the reccurence of alcoholism over generations. Am J Psychiatry 1979;136:589–93Google Scholar
Wolin, SJBennet, LNoonan, DLTeitelbaum, MA. Disrupted family rituals: a factor in the intergenerational transmission of alcoholism. J Stud Alcohol 1980;41:199–214CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wolin, SJBennet, L. Family rituals. Fam Proc 1984;23:401–20CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Submit a response

Comments

No Comments have been published for this article.