Symptom self-management and relapse in schizophrenia

The purpose of this descriptive study was to examine the relationships amon g 4 variables that are hypothesized to be associated with relapse in schizo phrenia; insight, symptom recognition, symptom self-management, and perceiv ed effectiveness of symptom self-management. The theoretical framework was derived from self-management theory and the vulnerability-stress model of s chizophrenia. Pearson's correlation coefficients for the variables in the m odel detected 2 significant relationships; between symptom recognition and symptom self-management and between symptom self-management and perceived e ffectiveness of symptom self-man agement. Insight was not found to be signi ficantly related to the other variables. Results of the study indicate that individuals with schizophrenia do recognize symptoms associated with relap se and use a wide range of management methods, regardless of the degree of insight present. Copyright (C) 2000 by W.B. Saunders Company.