ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to explore relationships among the level of agreement about perceived family support, emotional expressivity and psychiatric symptoms in patients with schizophrenia and their families. METHODS: The Family Support Scale, the Emotional Expressivity Scale and the Symptom Checklist-90-Revision were administered to 73 patients with schizophrenia and their 73 family members. RESULTS: Agreement about perceived family support was divided into four levels. The first level was where there was affirmative agreement between the patient and the family member. The second level was where there was negative agreement between the patient and the family member. At the third level there was a negative perception by the patient and an affirmative perception by the family member, and the final level was where there was an affirmative perception by the patient and a negative perception by the family member. The more positive the patients perceived their family support to be, the more they expressed their emotional expressivity. The patients, who agreed affirmatively with their family member about family support, were more able to express their emotion and had fewer psychiatric symptoms than the patients, who had negative agreement with their family member about family support. CONCLUSION: The level of perceived agreement of the family support affects emotional expressivity and psychiatric symptoms in patients with schizophrenia. The family support perception by the patient and family member can help you understand emotional expressivity and psychiatric symptom in schizophrenics.