Sociopsychiatric characteristic of clinic patrons with repeat gonorrhea infections

This study compared repeat gonorrhea patients with nonrepeat patients and control patients not having venereal disease. Focus was given to current intellectual and personality attributes as well as a broad spectrum of background factors in social, familial, educational, and sexual history. One-tailed t-tests were computed on the myriad permutations of patient group and the multiple derived scores from the personality and intellectual assessments. The results show no significant differences between the patients having their first infection of VD and the patients with repeat VD; however, when these 2 groups are pooled and compared with the controls, the VD patients are significantly higher on the depression, schizophrenia, psychasthenia, hysteria, and psychopathic scales. A similar pattern exists on reasoning ability and internal versus external locus of control. The VD patients are seen to perceive themselves as much more externally controlled than do the controls. It is concluded that the VD patients might profit from psychologic treatment; such treatment resources might aid not only in the control of repeat infections but in the general social integration of the patients.