The influence of perceived social support on medication adherence in first-episode psychosis

Objective: Our study examines the unique influence of social and family support on adherence to medication in a sample of patients treated for first-episode psychosis (FEP). Method: Social and family support using the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support and medication adherence (consensus of subjective and objective data) were evaluated on a monthly basis during a 6-month period in a sample of 82 FEP patients. The relation between social support and adherence was evaluated using correlational and linear regression analyses, controlling for other relevant variables. A longitudinal analysis using hierarchical linear models was conducted to model change in adherence over time. Results: Monthly correlations between social support and adherence were significant at 4 of 7 time points during a 6-month period. There was a modest correlation between the percentage of months of good adherence and the average level of family support across the study period. The linear regression failed to demonstrate a significant relation between baseline social support and overall adherence during the entire study period. Change in social support over time was inversely associated with change in adherence. Conclusions: Our study emphasizes the concurrent influence of social (mostly family) support on adherence but this effect does not persist over time. Changes in the degree of social support may have a complex effect on changes in adherence.