The relationship between personality traits, insight and internalized stigma in psychotic disorders

Abstract

Neuroticism and Extraversion have been shown to increase the levels of internal stigma people experience. These personality traits play large roles in the experience and interpretation of symptoms but their role in psychotic patients is unclear. In this study the effects of neuroticism and extraversion on the levels of self-stigma is examined in moderation with illness insight. In this study a sample of 32 psychotic patients were examined troughs several questionnaires. Results showed that neuroticism increases the scores on self-stigma and extraversion buffers for the effects of neuroticism. In conclusion the results of the study show consistent findings conform the hypotheses. Higher levels of neuroticism lead to higher levels of self-stigma, whereas extraversion mainly buffers for the negative effect of neuroticism. Higher levels of illness insight do not affect levels of self-stigma in psychotic patients.