S. Kravetz et al., The mental health of men with a psychiatric disorder or traumatic brain injury: Wives' labeling and husbands' perceived control, REHAB PSYCH, 46(4), 2001, pp. 436-451
Objective: To investigate the relations among wives' labeling of their husb
ands' psychiatric disorder or brain injury as an organic illness, the husba
nds' perceived control over their disabilities, and the husbands' mental he
alth. Participants: Fifty-seven male clients of the Department of Rehabilit
ation, Israel's Ministry of Defence (26 with a psychiatric disorder and 31
with a traumatic brain injury) and their wives. Measures: Illness Labeling
Questionnaire, the Perceived Control Over Illness Questionnaire, and the Me
ntal Health Inventory. Results: Husbands' mental health was low but did not
differ according to disability; wives' labeling of husbands' condition was
negatively related to the husbands' mental health; husbands' perceived con
trol was positively related to their mental health for both disabilities. C
onclusion: Organic illness labels, even when adopted by the wives of the pe
rsons with the disability, seem to be negatively related to that person's m
ental health, whereas perceived control over a mental disorder or a brain i
njury seems to contribute positively to mental health, independently of how
the disorder or injury is labeled.