Effects of Renaming Schizophrenia in Korea

Objective Korean Neuropsychiatric Association changed the Korean name of schizophrenia from ‘Split-mind Disorder’ to ‘Attunement Disorder in 2012. This study assessed attitudes towards the renaming of schizophrenia among mental health practitioners (n=440), patients with schizophrenia and their guardians (n=396), and the university students (n=140) using self-administered questionnaires. Methods The questionnaire included items related to participants’ perception of the renaming of the disease, the nature of informing about the disease to confirm the effect of the name change. Results It was confirmed the notification rate of disease name by mental health practitioners was increased significantly after the renaming. Among patients and their guardians, 24.9% and 15.0%, respectively, perceived their own or the family member’s illness as ‘attunement disorder’. Conclusion Patients and their guardians continue to display a low awareness about the name of the disease as ‘attunement disorder.’However, mental health practitioners were found to be able to easily use the name ‘attunement disorder’ as a result of the increased notification rate of the new disease name.