Hostname: page-component-7bb8b95d7b-cx56b Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-09-18T08:15:42.669Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Recent life events in schizophrenia and depression

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 July 2009

S. C. Jacobs
Affiliation:
Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Conn., U.S.A., and St. George's Hospital, London
B. A. Prusoff
Affiliation:
Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Conn., U.S.A., and St. George's Hospital, London
E. S. Paykel
Affiliation:
Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Conn., U.S.A., and St. George's Hospital, London

Sysnopsis

Depressives and matched first admission schizophrenics were compared with respect to life events experienced in the six months before the onset of illness. Depressives reported more events than schizophrenics, but this excess involved only certain types of events. Depressives reported more exits from the social field, and a variety of undesirable events, particularly those involving interpersonal arguments. They reported no more events in some other classes. These findings support previous work involving life events, particularly exits and undesirable events in the genesis of depression, and indicate that qualitative implications of events influence their effects.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1974

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Beck, J. C., and Worthen, K. (1972). Precipitating stress, crisis theory, and hospitalization in schizophrenia and depression. Archines of General Psychiatry, 26, 123129.Google Scholar
Brown, G. W., and Birley, J. L. T. (1968). Crises and life changes and the onset of schizophrenia. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 9, 203214.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Brown, G. W., Birley, J. L. T., and Wing, J. K. (1972). Influence of family life on the course of schizophrenic disorders: a replication. British Journal of Psychiatry, 121, 241258.Google Scholar
Brown, G. W., Sklair, F., Harris, T. O., and Birley, J. L. T. (1973). Life events and psychiatric disorders. Part I: some methodological issues. Psychological Medicine, 3, 7487.Google Scholar
Cadoret, R. J., Winokur, G., Dorzab, J., and Baker, M. (1972). Depressive disease: life events and onset of illness. Archives of General Psychiatry, 26, 133136.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dohrenwend, B. S., and Dohrenwend, B. P. (1970). Class and race as status-related sources of stress. In Social Stress, pp. 111140. Edited by Levine, S. and Scotch, N. A.. Aldine: Chicago.Google Scholar
Hollingshead, A. B. (1957). Two Factor Index of Social Position. Mimeographed booklet, Yale University: New Haven.Google Scholar
Holmes, T. H., and Rahe, R. H. (1968). The Social Readjustment Rating Scale. Journal of Psychosomatic Research 11, 213218.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kendell, R. E., Cooper, J. E., Gourlay, A. J., Copeland, J. R. M., Sharpe, L., and Gurland, B. J. (1971). Diagnostic criteria of American and British psychiatrists. Archives of General Psychiatry, 25, 123130.Google Scholar
Langner, T. S., and Michael, S. T. (1963). Life Stress and Mental Health. Macmillan: New York.Google Scholar
Malmquist, C. P. (1970). Depression and object loss in acute psychiatric admissions. American Journal of Psychiatry, 126, 17821787.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Mishler, E. G., and Scotch, N. A. (1965). Sociocultural factors in the epidemiology of schizophrenia. International Journal of Psychiatry, 1, 258305.Google Scholar
Myers, J. K., Lindenthal, J. J., and Pepper, M. P. (1971). Life events and psychiatric impairment. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, 152, 149157.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Parkes, C. M. (1963). Interhospital and intrahospital variations in the diagnosis and severity of schizophrenia. British Journal of Preventive and Social Medicine, 17, 8589.Google Scholar
Paykel, E. S. (in press). Recent life events and clinical depression. In Life Stress and Illness. Edited by Gunderson, E. K. and Rahe, R. H.. Thomas: Springfield, Ill.Google Scholar
Paykel, E. S., Myers, J. K., Dienelt, M. N., Kierman, G. L., Lindenthal, J. J., and Pepper, M. P. (1969). Life events and depression. A controlled study. Archives of General Psychiatry, 21, 753760.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Paykel, E. S., Prusoff, B. A., and Uhlenhuth, E. H. (1971). Scaling of life events. Archives of General Psychiatry, 25, 340347.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sethi, B. B. (1964). Relationship of separation to depression. Archives of General Psychiatry, 10, 486496.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Silverman, C. (1968). The Epidemiology of Depression. Johns Hopkins Press: Baltimore.Google Scholar
Uhlenhuth, E. H., and Paykel, E. S. (1973). Symptom configuration and life events. Archives of General Psychiatry, 28, 744748.Google Scholar