Am J Psychiatry 1985; 142:1442-1446
Copyright © 1985 by American Psychiatric Association
Self-derogation and adjustment in the community: a longitudinal study of psychiatric patients
RJ Lorimor, HB Kaplan and AD Pokorny
The authors assessed the symptoms and role performance of a group of
psychiatric inpatients 1 year after their discharge to determine their
level of adjustment in the community. Level of self-derogation at the time
of discharge was consistently found to predict the level of adjustment. The
occurrence of stressful life events was also predictive of symptoms but was
not found to be significantly related to role performance. The chronicity
of the disease was unrelated to adjustment. The change in self-derogation
level and its ability to predict community adjustment is interpreted in
terms of reestablishing the patient's belief in his or her own worth and
efficacy.
