Schizo Psychological explanation Flashcards
(18 cards)
What is family dysfunction in relation to schizophrenia?
Schizophrenia symptoms are due to the interpersonal relationships within the family.
What is the Schizophrenogenic mother theory?
A psychodynamic theory where paranoid delusions result from the influence of a cold, rejecting, and controlling mother and a passive father.
What triggers psychotic thinking according to the Schizophrenogenic mother theory?
An atmosphere of stress and secrecy.
What is the Double-bind Theory?
Due to mixed messages, the individual feels unable to do the correct thing, leading to disorganized thinking and paranoia.
What does Expressed Emotion refer to?
Verbal interactions that include exaggerated involvement, indicating the sufferer is a burden.
What are the components of Expressed Emotion?
Criticism and control of the sufferer’s behavior, along with physical, verbal, and emotional hostility.
What are cognitive explanations for schizophrenia?
The ability to process thoughts is dysfunctional.
What is Firth’s (1979) attention deficit theory?
A faulty attention system cannot filter preconscious thought, giving too much significance to information that would usually be filtered, leading to overload.
What positive symptoms can result from Firth’s attention deficit theory?
Hallucinations and delusions.
What is a delusion of control?
A fault in meta-representation, where an individual cannot identify their thoughts and actions as their own.
What did Butzlaff and Hooley (1998) find in their meta-analysis regarding schizophrenia?
Relapse into schizophrenia is significantly more likely in families with issues with expressed emotion.
What percentage of biological children of schizophrenic mothers developed schizophrenia when adopted into psychologically healthy families according to Tienari (2004)?
Only 5.8% developed schizophrenia.
What percentage of biological children of schizophrenic mothers developed schizophrenia when adopted into dysfunctional families according to Tienari (2004)?
36.8% developed schizophrenia.
Why is it socially sensitive to suggest that the family causes schizophrenia?
It is likely to cause additional stress and anxiety.
What biological causes of schizophrenia are supported by research evidence?
Genetics (Gottesman) and neurotransmitters (Leucht).
What did Stirling (2006) find regarding patients with schizophrenia in the Stroop test?
Patients took twice as long to name the color compared to controls.
What does the Stroop test result suggest about people with schizophrenia?
They have dysfunctional thought processing, specifically with faulty central control.
What is a limitation of the evidence regarding family dysfunction and schizophrenia?
The evidence is correlational, and having a schizophrenic child could be the cause of family dysfunction.
