SA119. Defeatist Attitudes and Self-Stigma Associations in Patients With Schizophrenia

Abstract

Background: Recent research has explored relationships among stigma, self-esteem, defeatist performance attitudes, and outcomes in schizo-phrenia. Internalized stigma has been associated with diminished self-esteem, hopelessness, and defeatist performance attitudes that have been associated with symptoms and poor functioning in schizophrenia. Internalized stigma can be viewed as self-defeating beliefs linked to illness, whereas defeatist attitudes as measured with the Defeatist Performance Attitude Scale (DPAS) are more generalized defeatist beliefs that may come from self-stigma related to illness as well as other factors such as failure experiences that are not attributed to illness. Method(s): This study examined the relationships between these constructs as measured by the DPAS (Cane, Olinger, Gotlib, & Kuiper, 2006), the short form of the Self-Stigma of Mental Illness Scale (SSMIS-SF) and the Self-Esteem Rating Scale (SERS), and the Beck Hopelessness Scale (BHS). Participants (N = 60) enrolled in a randomized clinical trial for older adults with schizophrenia (mean age = 56) completed these assessments along with a battery of symptom, functioning, and neuropsycho-logical measures. Result(s): Defeatist attitudes were moderately correlated with the Apply to Self (r =.453, P =.000), and Harm to Self-Esteem (r =.349, P =.006) subscales of the SSMIS-SF as well as both SERS subscales (positive: r =-.332, P =.002, negative: r =.461, P =.000), hopelessness (r =.391, P =.000), positive symptoms (Positive and Negative Syndrome (PANSS) positive subscale: r =.421, P