Exploring the link between stigma and social representations among people with and without schizophrenia in the French context

We explored the representations that individuals associate with schizophrenia in the French context, as well as the relationships between their own representations and the representations they attribute to other French people. Data were collected from individuals in the general population (N = 98) and those with schizophrenia (N = 59). Using a verbal association technique, participants produced words spontaneously based on the inductor word "schizophrenia". The instruction invited them to respond on their own behalf, but also "as the French would in general". Prototypical and similarity analyses were carried out. Results indicated that the representations of participants from the general population were associated with a vocabulary relative to schizophrenia as an illness and with stigmatizing stereotypes, such as madness, dangerousness and split personality when they expressed themselves on their own behalf, as well as psychopathy and confinement when they imagined how French people express themselves regarding schizophrenia. Participants with schizophrenia who had a clear view of the general population's stereotypes mostly referred to negative experiences and emotions such as loneliness, suffering and fear. These findings underline the value of considering the representations associated with schizophrenia in designing awareness campaigns, but also in clinical care for people with schizophrenia.