title: A quantitative measure for expressed emotion.
abstract: The items of the Five Minute Speech Sample, an instrument to elicit relatives' expressed emotion, were investigated in a follow-up study of 120 parents of adolescents with recent-onset schizophrenia. A composite scale was constructed using Mokken scale analysis. From the 9 available items, 6 formed a unidimensional and cumulative scale. This scale was applicable for the total parent group, as well as for fathers and mothers separately. A second scale of 2 items did not meet the criteria for the Mokken model completely and was applicable for the parent group as a whole, but not for fathers and mothers as separate groups. The configuration of the subscales as found with the Mokken scale analysis was comparable with the results of principal component analysis. A quantitative measure may detect smaller differences in expressed emotion than the dichotomous index and expands the possibilities for statistical tests.
authors.affiliation: Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, Department of Psychiatry, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: M E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Lenior
authors.forename: P M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Dingemans
authors.forename: D H
authors.initials: DH
authors.lastname: Linszen
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect; D005196:Family Therapy; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007807:Language Tests; D008297:Male; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D011613:Psychotherapy; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000628:therapy; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology; D014705:Verbal Behavior