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The relationship of social network deficits with deficits in social functioning in long-term psychiatric disorders

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Summary

It has been suggested that deficits or impairments in social functioning may explain the depleted support networks of the mentally ill. With this in mind, 145 long-term users of day care psychiatric facilities, 57% of whom had a life-time diagnosis of schizophrenia, were examined to determine whether deficits in social and survival skills explained deficits in their social networks. Compared with patients with acute depression, long-term patients had smaller social networks. There was a very small but statistically significant association between observer ratings of deficits in social functioning (daily social and living skills) and self-reported family social networks size. Behavioural problems were also associated with smaller family networks. Among the long-term patients, duration of service contact and type of disorder (affective vs nonaffective psychosis) were not related to network size. These preliminary findings are discussed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychiatry, University of Leicester, Clinical Sciences Building, Leicester Royal Infirmary, PO Box 65, LE2 7LX, Leicester, UK

    T. S. Brugha

  2. MRC Social and Community Psychiatry Unit, Institute of Psychiatry, De Crespigny Park, SE5 8AF, London, UK

    J. K. Wing

  3. Department of Psychology, Royal Holloway College, Egham Hill, TW20 0EX, Egham, Surrey, UK

    C. R. Brewin

  4. St Clements Hospital, 2A Bowe Road, Mile End, E3 4LL, London, UK

    B. MacCarthy

  5. Department de Recherche, Hopital L-H LaFontaine, 7401 rue Hochelaga, H1N 3M5, Montreal, Qc, Canada

    A. Lesage

Authors
  1. T. S. Brugha
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  2. J. K. Wing
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  3. C. R. Brewin
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  4. B. MacCarthy
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  5. A. Lesage
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Brugha, T.S., Wing, J.K., Brewin, C.R. et al. The relationship of social network deficits with deficits in social functioning in long-term psychiatric disorders. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol 28, 218–224 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00788740

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