The long-term goal of this project is to develop an ethnically- sensitive, effective intervention model for working with families of Chinese American schizophrenic patients. As an initial step, this pilot study aims to gain a systematic understanding of the experience of these families with regard to: a) their cultural beliefs concerning mental illness, particularly schizophrenia; b) the current sources of stress and coping behaviors in relation to care-giving to the schizophrenic patients; and c) their expectations, actual use and evaluation of mental health and other social services. Eighty family members of Chinese schizophrenic patients who are currently receiving out-patient service from mental health centers serving the Asian community in the Los Angeles area will be interviewed. These family members will be identified by the mental health professionals as the most involved in the care of the patients in terms of daily living and in drug compliance. These subjects and their mentally ill relatives have to be 18 years old or over. The interviews will take place in the mental health agencies or homes of the subjects. Family members views on the following aspects will be examined: causes of mental illness, use of western medicine in general, and psychotropic drugs in particular, perception of family responsibility in caring for the ill patient, family's burden on care-giving, family's involvement in the care-giving process, major sources of conflict between the patient and the family, perceived social support, coping strategies, family's acculturation, expected treatment goals, tasks seen as relevant to achieving the goals, expected therapeutic bonds with mental health professionals, and past use of mental health and social services. Standardized scales as well as open-ended questions will be administered. The data obtained from this project will then be used in a subsequent study to develop a family intervention model for this particular clientele by modifying or adapting existing models designed for the general (i.e. Caucasian) population. The data will also provide a basis for developing outcome measures suitable for application to the Chinese population.
