Expressed emotion and health outcomes among Mexican-Americans with schizophrenia and their caregiving relatives

Abstract

Past studies have demonstrated a clear relationship between expressed emotion (EE) and relapse for individuals with schizophrenia. However, little attention has been directed toward exploring whether EE may have negative health consequences for caregivers as well. We recruited 60 Mexican-American family caregivers of individuals with schizophrenia and examined whether EE predicted the health of caregivers and ill relatives approximately 13 months later. For caregiving relatives, the EE indices of emotional over-involvement and warmth were predictive of worse mental health among caregivers at follow-up. There was no association between EE and health outcome among individuals with schizophrenia. Our findings suggest that, among Mexican-Americans, family factors may be associated with health outcomes among individuals with schizophrenia and their caregiving relatives.