Social skills deficits and the associated factors of patients with depressive disorders in Outpatient Psychiatric Department, King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital
Abstract:
Objective : To determine the prevalence and associated factors of social skills deficits in patients with depressive disorders in Psychiatric Outpatient Department, King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital. The associated factors included severity of depression, satisfaction with family function, self-esteem, and personality characteristics. Methods : We recruited 150 patients aged 18 years and above and they were diagnosed as major depressive disorder or persistent depressive disorder (dysthymia) using DSM-4TR or DSM-5 criteria. All participants completed 6 questionnaires; 1) Socio-Demographic questionnaire 10 items, 2) Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) - Thai version 21 items, 3) Social Skill Inventory (SSI) - Thai version 66 items, 4) Family Adaptation, Partnership, Growth, Affection, Resolve (APGAR) Questionnaire 5 items, 5) Revised Version of Thai Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (Revised Thai RSES) 10 items and 6) Maudsley Personal Inventory (MPI) 48 items. Data analysis using the SPSS software for Windows 22.0 (Chulalongkorn University). The prevalence of social skills deficits in depressed patients was presented in proportion and percentage. The associated factors of social skills deficits (demographic, severity of depression, duration of illness with depression, the satisfaction of family supports, self-esteem and personalities) were analyzed by the chi-square test, Fishers Exact test and independent t-test. Logistic regression was performed to identify the potential predictors of social skills deficits. A p-value of less than 0.05 was statistically significant. Results : The prevalence of social skills deficits in depressed patients was 46.7%. The mean score (with SD) of social skills on SPSS was 78.06±16.47. Factors associated with social skills deficits were being female, age under 40 years (p < 0.05), moderate-to-severe level of depression, low-to-moderate satisfaction level of family function, low level of self-esteem, introvert personality, and neurotic personality (p < 0.01). By logistic regression analysis, the significant predictors of social skills deficits were introvert personality, the moderate-to-severe level of depression and neurotic personality. Conclusion : Social skills deficits were quite high (46.7%) in Thai depressed patients. The severity of depression and introvert personality were significantly associated with the patients social skills. The social skills enhancing program may help to reduce patients depressive symptoms.