Evaluations Of Psychological Treatments For Schizophrenia

Question 1

evaluations Of Psychological Treatments For Schizophrenia

Answer 1

• not very effectivene
• time consuming
• ethical issues
• ignores biological factors

Question 2

not very effective

Answer 2

• not as effective as once thought
• Jauhar et al reviewed results of 34 studies of CBT for SCHIZ and concluded that it only has a small effect of positive and negative symptoms
• only suggest weak evidence for effectiveness
• also family therapy only helps the patients family not the actual sufferer , so its only indirectly effective
• biological treatments directly target symptoms of the sufferer
• usually used along side biological treatments to get rid of symptoms drug treatments couldn’t get rid of
  LIMITATION
  treatment alone isn’t effective for curing SCHIZ suggests the need of combined treatment

Question 3

time consuming

Answer 3

• even though there is no side effects there are other problems that arise
• treatment is time consuming compared to drug treatment which has a more immediate effect
• if the person isn’t motivated enough time wasted trying to get them motivated and not actually treating symptoms
  -also if the patient requires lots of sessions this can be time wasting if the disorder hasn’t occurred from psychological factors
• this wastes money for both the patient and the therapist
  LIMITATION
  questions whether the psychological treatments are appropriate for patients with SCHIZ

Question 4

ethical issues

Answer 4

-even though they have no side effects they still have ethical issues
- CBT aims to alter how people think which can include some religious beliefs
- EX. delusions may be seen as acceptable and sacred in some religions
- demonstrates culture bias- therapists focus on what is acceptable in there own culture
- therefore changing these thought patterns prevents their freedom of thought
- token economies change their behaviour so society accepts them better
- family therapy makes life better for the family not directly for the patients symptoms
- all therapies aim at changing patients to what society views as ‘right’
LIMITATION
questions whether therapy is actually benefiting the individual or the people around them

Question 5

Ignores biological factors

Answer 5

• theres strong evidence that neurotransmitters are involved such as dopamine
• evidence from biological treatments suggest that it is effective in treating SCHIZ
  -EX Thornley et als review of studies = effectiveness of Chlorpromazine
• demonstrates biological determinism because it has been effective in improving symptoms
• also demonstrates the nature nurture debate because psychological treatments ignore natures influence on SCHIZ
  LIMITATION
  psychological treatments may not be as effective as psychological treatments