Psychological psychological factors, affecting activity of search for medical care by patients suffering from borderline mental disorders

Objective: to study the effect of psychological factors on activity of medical care-seeking behavior. Material: 200 inpatients, suffering from affective disorders or neurotic, stress-related and somatoform disorders. Patients were divided into 2 groups: with active medical care-seeking behavior (those who visited a doctor in less than 6 months after onset of symptoms) and passive medical care-seeking behavior (those who visited a doctor in 6 months or longer after onset of symptoms). Methods: Attitudes toward Mental Illness Questionnaire, The Ways of Coping Questionnaire (S. Folkman, R.S. Lazarus), test of Leonhard-Schmieschek. Results: Combination of average degree of severity of coping strategies Confrontive Coping and Escape-Avoidance, moderately accentuated anxiety traits and hypochondriac type of attitude toward illness is favorable one for active search for medical care. Vividly expressed accentuated anxiety traits and sensitive type of attitude toward illness are factors of passive search for medical care.