The International journal of social psychiatry
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Int J Soc Psychiatry · May 2010
Lay theories of bipolar disorder: the causes, manifestations and cures for perceived bipolar disorder.
This study aimed to investigate lay theories of the cause and treatment of bipolar disorder, and the recognition of its symptoms. This questionnaire-based study included vignette descriptions of mental disorders and 70 items relating to bipolar disorder. It was completed by 173 participants. ⋯ Drug treatment was favoured as a cure rather than psychotherapy. Theories of cause and treatment were logically correlated. Overall, the results suggest that lay people have reasonably informed beliefs about the causes and treatments of bipolar disorder, however recognition of the symptoms is poor.