title: Johyeonbyung (attunement disorder): renaming mind splitting disorder as a way to reduce stigma of patients with schizophrenia in Korea.
abstract: The term schizophrenia, which comes from the Greek roots "skhizein" and "phren," was translated as "Jungshinbunyeolbyung" in East Asian Countries, including Japan, Korea, and China. The term literally means "mind-splitting disease." This term has generated a misconception of the disorder as an untreatable chaotic personality, thus instilling stigma and causing suffering in patients and their families. This socio-cultural connotation has impeded medical treatment of schizophrenia. Recent neuroscience research has suggested neural network dysfunction in schizophrenia. Accordingly, a new term, "Johyeonbyung (attunement disorder)", was coined in South Korea. This term literally refers to tuning a string instrument, and metaphorically it describes schizophrenia as a disorder caused by mistuning of the brain's neural network. We expect that the term Johyeonbyung will incite less prejudice and that its metaphoric description of the disorder may help patients to access medical treatment in the early phase. The name of a psychiatric disorder can influence others' attitudes toward patients; thus, discretion is crucial in naming psychiatric disorders.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Yong-In Mental Hospital, Yongin, South Korea.
authors.forename: Yu Sang
authors.initials: YS
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine, Kwandong University, Gangneung, South Korea.
authors.forename: Ii Ho
authors.initials: IH
authors.lastname: Park
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Yong-In Mental Hospital, Yongin, South Korea.
authors.forename: Seon-Cheol
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Park
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine, Yonsei University, Seoul, South Korea.
authors.forename: Jae-Jin
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, South Korea. Electronic address: kwonjs@snu.ac.kr.
authors.forename: Jun Soo
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Kwon
mesh_terms: D003469:Culture; D006801:Humans; D056910:Republic of Korea; D012559:Schizophrenia; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology; D057545:Social Stigma; D013240:Stereotyping; D009626:Terminology as Topic
keywords: Attunement disorder; Metaphor; Neural network; Schizophrenia; Social stigma