Individual Differences Explanations for SZ

Question 1

Psychodynamic explanation

Answer 1

Freud argues that people with SZ become orally fixated during 1-2 months of development, which causes regression in adulthood back to the oral stage where the id is dominant

Question 2

How does the psychodynamic explanation link to symptoms of SZ

Answer 2

Since the id is dominant at the oral stage, positive symptoms like delusions and hallucinations reflect unchecked desires/activities of the id (loss of touch with reality)

Question 3

Cognitive Explanation

Answer 3

In those with SZ, the ‘process’ part of ‘input - process - output’ is faulty, which results in faulty ‘outputs’ as symptoms of SZ.

Question 4

Attentional bias in relation to delusions

Answer 4

Unusual attention to some stimuli over another, which may be interpreted incorrectly (e.g misinterpreting stimuli as a threat, causing paranoid delusions)

Question 5

Selective attention in relation to disorganised thinking

Answer 5

Defective mechanisms that filter and process stimuli - results in too much attention to irrelevant stimuli (or vice versa), which causes a person to jump from one topic to another without any connection

Question 6

Faulty schema in relation to hallucinations

Answer 6

Failure to access schema results in inability to recognise their own memory, such as their inner voice, which may then be mistaken as external. Could also explain disorganised thinking as schemes are usually used to guide our thoughts.

Question 7

Cognitive Triad

Answer 7

Negative views of the world (avolition) -> negative views of the future (alogia) -> negative views of oneself (asociality, anhedonia, and flat affect)

Question 8

How does Beck et al. (2008) link the cognitive triad to negative symptoms?

Answer 8

Negative views of oneself leads to dysfunctional beliefs of their own ability to experience pleasure. Dysfunctional filters as a whole only allow negative views to be perceived.