A Study of Public Attitude Toward Epilepsy in Kwang-ju Area

ABSTRACT

Public attitudes and awareness toward epilepsy were surveyed in Kwang-ju area. A representative population of 587 persons aged over 18 years was selected in a systematic sampling procedure from the Kwang-ju telephone directory published in 1991. The social background of the respondents did not deviated significantly from that of the general population in this age range. The questionnaire consisted of 34 guestions designed to determine the respondent's social background, acquaintance with epileptic patients, awareness of epilepsy, and opinions and attitudes about the disorder. The result from this survey was as follows; 1) The prejudice and misunderstanding toward epilepsy in our society were much more serious than those in other societies reviewed in this study, which may be due to our own peculiar cultural background. 2) Although social discrimination against persons with epilepsy was due mainly to social stigma on epilepsy based on extra-ordinary misunderstanding of people, a very passive and pessimistic attitude of the patient himself may be contributed to it considerably. 3) Even if the epileptic seizure was well controlled with appropriate antiepileptic drugs, the social attitude toward occupational activity of persons with epilepsy was very negative. 4) The negative attitude toward epilepsy in our society was closely correlated to the level of education and age of respondents; the older or less educated they were, the more objections they had.