Renaming schizophrenia? A survey among psychiatrists, mental health service users and family members in Italy

Abstract

This survey explores how psychiatrists, service users and family members in Italy perceive the term schizophrenia and if they consider a name change a useful option in order to overcome the stigma attached to it. Opinions on the term schizophrenia were collected by a self-rated questionnaire used in previous international surveys. Questionnaires were delivered members of the Italian Psychiatric Association. Survey of mental health users was conducted among members of the main users' association of the Veneto region; survey of family members was conducted among one of the most representative Italian family association. Overall, 350 psychiatrists, 71 mental health users and 110 family members filled in the questionnaires. Considering the whole sample, 41.5% found the term inappropriate, 67.6% stigmatizing and 72.3% advocated a name change. Among psychiatrists 57% reported that schizophrenia was inappropriate, 70% considered the term stigmatizing and 71% was in favor of a name change. Similarly, 56% of service users and 71% of family members found schizophrenia a stigmatizing term and, respectively, 75% and 77% advocated a name change. Conflicting results were found on possible alterative terms: psychiatrists proposed a wide range of possible options, most of which referred to the term 'psychosis' (53%), whereas users and family members preferred terms referring to the broad category of 'mental health suffering'. Overall, most of respondents in the three stakeholders' groups agree that schizophrenia should be renamed to reduce the stigma attached to it; the main challenge, however, is the lack of consensus on the best alternative term to use.

Keywords: Diagnosis; Renaming; Schizophrenia; Stereotypes; Stigma.