Level of expressed emotion and quality of life in HIV patients

The Level of Expressed Emotion is a measure of perceived emotional climate of one''s social environment. The measure has been used in previous studies in predicting relapse in other psychological disorders. This study sought to investigate the relationship of the level of expressed emotion and the quality of life of PLWHA. The LEE scale and the WHOQOL-HIV were administered to 72 participants who were HIV positive and a control group of 43 participants who were HIV negative. The LEE scale''s four dimensions were used to establish the overall level of expressed emotion of the participants. The QOL of PLWHA was found out to be relatively higher than that of HIV negative participants. The results also indicated an inverse correlation between the LEE and the QOL that participants perceived themselves to have. Male participants were found to have higher EE than female participants and the QOL was generally low for males than females. The findings suggest that future interventions in HIV positive people should take into account their home environment and issues of care and support in their families.