Measuring community functioning in schizophrenia with the Social Behaviour Schedule.

BACKGROUND

Current emphasis on community integration requires reliable and valid measures of social behaviour; existing assessments largely overlap with symptoms or provide little detail on functioning. This study aims to re-assess the Social Behaviour Schedule (SBS) to fulfil this measurement role.

METHODS

Internal consistency, construct validity and test-retest reliability were investigated in 421 community out-patients with schizophrenia. Concurrent validity was assessed against the Life Skill Profile (LSP), in 143 additional patients.

RESULTS

A 17-item SBS supported the construct validity of four factors: Antisocial Behaviour, Depressed Behaviour, Social Withdrawal and Thought Disturbance. It showed good test-retest reliability and rated significant social behaviour in a community sample. Weak correlations were observed with positive and negative symptoms. With the exception of Depressed Behaviour, the SBS factors showed strong correlations with the LSP.

CONCLUSION

SBS-17 is a valid measure assessing relevant community social functioning factors with relatively few items. The SBS could be useful both in research and in clinical settings.