Hopelessness in schizophrenia: the impact of symptoms and beliefs about illness.

Risk factors for the development of hopelessness in schizophrenia remain poorly understood. This study investigated how psychiatric symptom levels and beliefs about illness might be linked to hopelessness in 100 patients with DSM-IV schizophrenia. Participants were assessed on the Beck Hopelessness Scale (BHS), the Calgary Depression Scale for Schizophrenia (CDSS), the Personal Beliefs about Illness Questionnaire (PBIQ), the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS), and the Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS). Severe levels of hopelessness were found in 25% of the sample. There were significant differences between the hopeless and nonhopeless participants on the PBIQ subscales, SANS and BPRS. Differences on the PBIQ subscales remained significant when depression scores were controlled for. The total CDSS score, the "humiliating need to be marginalized" PBIQ subscale, and total BPRS score contributed significantly to a model accounting for 60% of the variance in hopelessness scores. Processes potentially implicated in the emergence of hopelessness in schizophrenia are discussed.