Abstract

This study examined the concepts of depression in oder to develop the depression attitude questionnaire in adult. The participants of study were 26 adults who agreed with our study among the stratified clustered random sampling. Based on ground theory, the data from transcribed interviews were analyzed by using open coding. The result of this study presented the concepts of depression which composed of the knowledge of depression and the attitude of depression. Finally, we were separate the concepts of depression into two questionnaires. The questionnaire for knowledges of depression was composed of the cause, symptoms, and treatment of depression. Most of participants were understood the symptoms of depression well but considered the cause of it to psychological factor, and depression are not genuine disease. The attitudes toward depression were compose of emotional distance, stigma, familism, personal weakness. Participants have a negative emotion to depressive patients and have stigma to them, but they have responsibility to their family member who have depression. We expect that result of the study will be a base upon the development of psychometric tool for depression attitude. (Korean J Str Res 2008;16:233∼240)

• Keywords: Depression knowledge, Depression attitude, Qualitative study, Psychometric tool;