[The German version of the Inventory of Stigmatizing Experiences (ISE)--a new tool for assessing the prevalence and impact of "felt stigma"].
OBJECTIVE
Stigma research has been criticized for excluding the views of those exposed to stigmatizing reactions. While this changed with the advent of qualitative research into stigma, population-based data on the prevalence, severity and consequences of stigma experiences are lacking. The present study aims at field-testing the German version of the Inventory of Stigmatizing Experiences (ISE) , developed to investigate the epidemiology of "felt stigma".


METHODS
The ISE is a semi-structured questionnaire composed of two scales: one measuring the scope of stigma experienced in different life domains (SES; 9 items), the other assessing their psychosocial impact (SIS; 7 items). The instrument was translated into German, using the three-step procedure proposed by WHO (translation, back-translation, feasibility testing). Field-testing of the German version was carried out on 95 service users.


RESULTS
The German version of the ISE shows good reliabilities for both the stigma experiences (SES; alpha = 0.74) and stigma impact (SIS; alpha = 0.86) scales. 54.4 % of service users report stigma experiences across the SES; 72 % of these are recent and thus susceptible for interventions.


CONCLUSIONS
The German version of the ISE is a compact and reliable tool for measuring the prevalence and impact of felt stigma, with potential uses in both population-based stigma research and clinical practice.
Schulze
Beate
B
Universität Zürich, Forschungsbereich Klinische und Soziale Psychiatrie, Fachzentrum für Katastrophen- und Wehrpsychiatrie. beate.schulze@bli.uzh.ch
Stuart
Heather
H
Riedel-Heller
Steffi G
SG
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017028:Caregivers / Q000523:psychology; D003158:Community Psychiatry; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D005260:Female; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D010552:Personality Assessment / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011287:Prejudice; D011369:Professional-Patient Relations; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012106:Research; D012803:Sick Role; D013240:Stereotyping; D013557:Switzerland; D014175:Translating; D055815:Young Adult