Would you please ask straight question? What do you really want? Slow cognitive processing in schizophrenia is generally reported in previous studies.

Hi Md.Mamun Al-Amin,

Thanks for your response.  Regardless of what the study consist of, I want to know the terminology used to describe people who self-report a diagnosis of Schizophrenia.

Perhaps, Person with Schizophrenia (PWS) by self-report.

Given the absence of a precedent in your literature review and given the high levels anosognosia associated with this disorder perhaps borrow the terminology from other disorders with a tract record of anosognosia associations as well, for example obsessive compulsive disorder. The DSM-5 includes amongst the specifiers for obsessive compulsive disorder differentiations between those with good insight as opposed to those with poor insight and absent insight.

But bear in mind that this may be in relation to the conviction of their delusions, which could have implications for what your study is investigating.

Hope this helps.

There is no formal terminology to my knowledge and I would advise against inclusion, unless you use a diagnostic instrument or a formal psychiatric evaluation to confirm the diagnosis. Often the patient has lack of insight into the disorder (doi:10.1007/s11920-010-0125-7), which makes self-diagnosis notoriously unreliable. However, if you do have a formal diagnostic screening, you could make a note that these are self-referred patients.

What a strange question? Or there is something I did not understand. The basis of the scientific approach in human sciences (psychology, psychiatry) is to avoid all subjectivity and to appeal to external judgments. Also, what is the scientific interest of a "self-diagnosis," or of a "self-therapy," etc.? Another example, in the psychometric perspective, we all know that "self-assessments" (self-questionnaires) are methodologically less valuable than the "hetero-assessments" or evaluations with several judges.

That said, unless the "self-diagnosis of schizophrenia" has an interest in the context of a particular research. But in this case there is no reason to give it a name other than "self-diagnosis of schizophrenia" it's a simple variable, not really a diagnosis, a kind of measure nosognosia.

I would call them brave.

Here are a few other points: Some one who thinks of themselves as having experienced or is experiencing this intermittent disorder is... hardly up to doing an hour long questionnaire if currently unwell... very unlikely to call themselves by such a label if it had never been given by a medical authority.... does not carry their diagnosis on a card in their pocket, the doctor tends to hold onto records..... and can not tell demonstrate proof in a physical way as its a symptom cluster that occurs in behaviour only - no pathology. 

Hi all,

Thank you all for your thoughts and gestures. However, this hasn't gone quite the way I planned...

The study was advertised for people who have FORMALLY received a diagnosis of a schizophrenic spectrum disorder in their LIFE TIME by a medically qualified practitioner. My original post did convey "participants who had ever received a formal diagnosis of schizophrenia ". This study wasn't advertised for "People who think they may have Schizophrenia!?!?!!!!!!" 

After speaking to clinicians, collectively  the best approach is referring to a group; "person with Schizophrenia (PWS) by self-report." (Thank you Mary V.Seeman). Other approaches referred to people not actively in treatment, not receiving treatment etc. 

Thanks for trying.

Topic Closed.

These sorts of questions are often used in epidemiological studies outside of psychiatry and by the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System at the CDC. Whereas people tend to accept the validity of some categories, there is a tendency to reject self-reported, professionally diagnosed mental disorders. Some national surveys in Canada used this approach, and the epidemiological picture was actually quite reasonable (as it is also for conditions such as diabetes and asthma) - see attached. 

 in my opinion - person thet  know his medical diagnosis

I would term it something like, "... self-reported as having received a (formal) diagnosis of ..."  .  This is how I record such information in the medical record when I am taking a history on a new patient and do not have their medical record available to me at the time.