Attitude similarity and satisfaction of family members of schizophrenics with services of a professional.
Examined a hypothesis that satisfaction with professionals among families of schizophrenics varies as a function of how similar the professionals' attitudes about schizophrenia are to the family members' attitudes. Twenty-eight family members of individuals diagnosed by DSM-III criteria as having schizophrenia completed a questionnaire that assessed their attitudes with regard to causes and treatments of schizophrenia. Ss then were mailed a completed questionnaire and were asked to indicate how satisfied they would be working with a person who held the attitudes expressed in the questionnaire. In the attitude-similar condition, the questionnaire was 90% in agreement with their own attitudes, and in the attitude-discrepant condition, the questionnaire was 10% in agreement. Responses were received from 21 family members. Results supported the hypothesis; family members in the attitude-similar condition reported that they would be more satisfied with the professional than did family members in the attitude-discrepant condition. Implications for work with families of schizophrenics are discussed.