Project description and development:
Because one goal of this study is to develop a measure of adult psychopathology, focus groups were conducted in order to assess how native Jamaicans would describe various psychological disturbances in adults and what their or others reactions to and attitudes about such disorders might be.
A focus group was held with Jamaican adults to find out what people
perceive as mental illness and how they feel the mentally ill should be
treated (see Transcript Interpretations on "Norm" under "My Files" in the
"Jamaican Attitudes" folder). F. Markle and V. Francois created these
measures during the year of 1997 - 1998.
Measures:
Attitudes Regarding Adult Problems in Jamaica: The
instrument is comprised of thirteen vignettes for each sex and 117 questions
about the vignettes. Each question assesses adult attitudes towards
people exhibiting the types of behaviors present in the vignettes (i.e.
he should be avoided). The vignettes describe a Jamaican man
and woman suffering from one of the following disorders as defined in the
DSM IV: 1) Schizophrenia, 2) Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, 3) Agoraphobia,
4) Social Phobia, 5) Insomnia, 6) Hypochondriasis, 7) Major Depressive
Disorder, 8) Manic Episode, 9) Alzheimer's Type Dementia, 10) Substance
Abuse: Ganja (Marijuana), 11) Substance Abuse: Cocaine, 12) Sexual Arousal
Disorder, and 13) Substance Abuse: Alcohol.
Location:
The instrument is in "My Files" on computer "Norm" in folder "Jamaican
Attitudes" under John and Mary, Attitude Questions Modified Female and
Attitude Questions Modified Male.
The Jamaican Adult Psychopathology Study: Socioeconomic Questionnaire:
This measure was adapted for the current study from a measure designed
by Maureen Samms-Vaughan, The Jamaican Cohort Study Questionnaire.
The Jamaican Cohort Study Questionnaire is a socio-economic questionnaire
designed specifically for Jamaicans. As the original
measure was intended for use with children, changes were made to render
it appropriate for adults.
The questionnaire consists of 51 items, targeting 6 factors: a) Identification,
b) Social Environment, c) Physical Environment, d) Academic Environment,
e) Religious Environment, and f) Home Environment. The measure consists
of multiple choice, yes/no, and open-ended questions (i.e. what is your
relationship/marital status?, did your birth mother financially support
you as a child?)
Location:
The instrument can be found in "My Files" on computer "Norm" in folder
"Jamaican Attitudes" under TJAPS.
Jamaican Adult Self Report and Jamaican Adult Third Party Report:
Questions for these two new measures were derived from clinical archival
data (i.e., problems reported at adult clinic intakes) and from the focus
groups in which Jamaican adults were asked to describe people with psychological
problems (see Transcript Interpretations on "Norm" under "My Files" in
the "Jamaican Attitudes" folder). Symptom
Checklist - 90 (SCL-90) codes were then used to compare the data from the
Jamaican adult clinics with a similar measure of Adult Psychopathology
used in the United States. The Jamaican Adult
Self Report consists of 167 open-ended and multiple-choice
questions. Subjects are asked to answer a series of 20 open-ended
questions (i.e. have you ever been sexually abused or raped?, have
you ever suffered severe illness, hospitalizations, etc.?) pertaining to
risk factors and physical/mental health history. After answering
the open-ended questions, respondents are asked to read through a checklist
of 147 specific symptoms (i.e. blurred vision, talking foolishness, etc.),
indicating which symptoms they have experienced and to what degree.
The
Adult Third Party Report is similar in the open-ended section,
but in the specific symptoms section, the person filling out the questionnaire
is describing someone else.
Location:
The two instruments can be found in "My Files" on computer "Norm" in folder
"Jamaican Attitudes" under Jamaican Symptoms Checklist: Adult Self Report
and Jamaican Symptoms Checklist: Adult Third Party Report.
Competencies of Jamaican Adults: Jamaican
adults in a focus group were asked to describe healthy Jamaican adults.
Their responses were used to formulate items for a checklist which measures
factors which might protect an individual from psychopathology.
Each participant filled out either a self-report form or a third party
report form. Each measure consists of 31 items (i.e. able to read
social cues, feel loved) that ask: "How true is this of you?" and "Based
on your rating, what effect does this have on you?" The measure also
includes a four-question inventory on personal activities, hobbies, and
circle of friends.
Location:
The instrument can be found in "My Files" on computer "Norm" in folder
"Jamaican Attitudes" under competencies.
Datasets:
preliminary SAS dataset: sasuser.adultpat
(Jamaican adult archival data)
SAS program files used to create
dataset: C:\data\adultpat\programs\readadlt.sas
The main data collection is currently taking place in Jamaica.
Papers which have been written using these data: none at present
Status of project: Data being collected (Summer and Fall 1998).