Contrasting Multi-Generational Attitudes Toward Psychosis in Two Norwegian Families

Two families reacted quite differently when their eldest daughters exhibited unmanageable, psychotic symptoms. One family's reaction was to keep the daughter at home and hide from the world; the other's reaction was to push the daughter out of the family and to forget her. This paper illustrates the influence of cultural, socioeconomic, and psychological backgrounds on these patterns of reaction. The problems of establishing a working relationship with the families are also discussed.