Attitudes toward persons with epilepsy as friends: Results of a factorial survey

Objective: Discrimination against persons with epilepsy (PWEs) may persist. The aim of this study was to examine whether epilepsy is an obstacle to desired friendship.Methods: A factorial survey (vignettes), which is less biased by social desirability, was applied to PWEs, their relatives, and lay persons. The vignettes described a person who was varied by the dimensions of age (younger, same age, older), gender (male, female), disease (healthy, mild epilepsy, severe epilepsy [generalized toni-clonic seizures], diabetes), origin (German, non-German), contact (phone/internet, activities at home, activities outside), frequency of contacts (weekly, monthly), and distance (around the corner, 10 km away). Respondents rated their willingness to befriend the person on a 10-point Likert scale. Multivariate regression determined the contribution of each dimension on the judgment.Results: Participants were 64 PWEs (age = 37.1 +/- 14.0 years), 64 relatives of PWEs (age = 45.1 +/- 13.6 years), and 98 controls without contact with PWEs (age = 24.4 +/- 10.1 years). Controls were less interested in a friendship with a PWE with mild epilepsy (-3.4%) and even more avoided PWEs with severe epilepsy (-11.7%), whereas in PWEs with toni-clonic seizures, a mild form of epilepsy was actually conducive to friendship (+7.0%). Controls preferred females (+5.0%) and disliked younger people (-12.3%) and contacts via the internet or telephone (-7.3%). PWEs were also less interested in younger people (-5.8%), and relatives of PWEs had a lower preference for friendships with longer distance (-2.3%).Significance: PWEs still suffer from a risk of social avoidance, and this becomes more evident with generalized motor seizures.

Automated summary

The aim of this study was to examine whether epilepsy is a barrier to desired friendship. Participants included persons with epilepsy, their relatives, and lay persons. The results showed that individuals without direct contact with persons with epilepsy were less interested in forming friendships, particularly with those who had severe epilepsy.