Psychological Explanation

Question 1

Main assumption for the psychological explanation

Answer 1

the main focus in on the psychological environment that the person is in
- focus on the influence of the family, and its role in individuals becoming vulnerable to developing SZ
- there is also a large focus on cognitions and how abnormal thought processes influence the sufferers experience of SZ

Question 2

Family dysfunction

Answer 2

the presence of problems within a family that contribute to replace rates in recovering schizophrenics, including a lack of warmth between parent and child, dysfunctional communication patterns. and parental overprotection
- double bind theory
- expressed emotion
- schizophrenogenic mothers

Question 3

Cognitive Explanation

Answer 3

propose that abnormalities in cognitive function are a key component of schizophrenia
- metarepresentational
- central control

Question 4

Double Bind

Answer 4

Family Dysfunction
- refers to the conflicting communication due to the contrasting messages
- Bateson - children who frequently receive contradictory messages from their parents are more likely to develop SZ
- the child receives 2 conflicting messages about the relationship on different communication levels, one with affection on the verbal level, and one of animosity on the non-verbal level

Question 5

A03 on Double Bind

Answer 5

• Berger found that schizophrenics reported higher recall of double bind statements
• research is socially sensitive- family is to blame

Question 6

Expressed emotion

Answer 6

Family dysfunction
- A family communication style in which members of the family, talk about that patient in a critical an hostile way
-Kuiper found that high levels of EE are most likely to experience relapse rates, a patient returning to a family with high EE is 4 times more likely to relapse

Question 7

AO3 of expressed emotion

Answer 7

• individual differences
• social sensitivity

Question 8

Schizophrenogenic mothers

Answer 8

Family Dysfunction
- Freeda Fromm-Reichmann found that patients described a particular type of parent- schizophrenogenic mother- SZ causing
- Mother is characterised by being cold, rejecting and controlling- family climate is characterised by tension, secrecy leading to distrust and eventually paranoid delusions

Question 9

A03 schizophrenogenic mothers

Answer 9

• Lacks evidence- collects qualitative data
• social sensitivity

Question 10

Metarepresentation

Answer 10

Cognitive explanation
- The cognitive ability to be able to reflect on thoughts and behaviours and this allows us insight into our won intentions and goals
- Dysfunction in this would disrupt our own ability to recognise our own actions and thoughts as being carried out by ourselves rather than someone else- this would explain hallucination of voices and delusions
- Stirling and stroop test

Question 11

A03 of metarepresentation

Answer 11

• reductionism
• social sensitivity

Question 12

Central control

Answer 12

Cognitive explanation
- Ability to suppress or overrise automatic thoughts, actions and speech in response to stimuli, self control can be faulty in patients with SZ
- sufferers tend to experience derailments of thoughts and spoken sentences because each word triggers associations, and the partied cannot suppress automatic response to these
- stroop test

Question 13

A03 of central control

Answer 13

• cognitive therapies are effective in treating schizophrenic patients