I shall first review three brief interventions with education as the main component. The more intensive family interventions are reviewed next. The efficacy of both types of studies is examined. There is one report of family interventions, which had no impact on patient's relapse rates. The characteristics of this non-effective study are examined and suggestions of what we can learn from it are made.
Schizophrenia is regarded as an illness with a biological component.
Patients suffering from schizophrenia are particularly vulnerable to environmental stress, including relative criticisms, hostility and emotional over-involvement. Therapists advocate a disease model that carries implications for rehabilitation and avoidance of stress. Families are not blamed for causing the illness in the first place or subsequent relapses. There is no assumption that the origin of the illness lies in the pathological interaction in the family. In fact high EE behavior is relevant to other medical conditions and possibly exists in 'normal' families.