Interactionist Explanations of Schizophrenia (Paper 3)*

Question 1

Briefly outline the concept of the diathesis-stress model.

Answer 1

The diathesis (genetic predisposition) is triggered by the stress (environmental factor) which leads to the disorder i.e. schizophrenia.

Question 2

What did Joseph find that alludes to a diathesis stress model.

Answer 2

Concordance rates of MZ twins was 40% compared to 7% for DZ twins - there must be another cause of schizophrenia that accounts for the other 60% of cases.

Question 3

Give two advantages of the interactionist approach’s explanation of schizophrenia.

Answer 3

Advantages:
- Supporting evidence - Tienari et al. - adoptive-family ratings predicted schizophrenia in children from Finnish mothers though only in high-risk cases, not low-risk.

• Allows for free will - knowledge that external triggers are the cause of schizophrenia leads individuals to make more positive life choices - e.g. avoiding cannabis use or urbanised areas - those who has been abused under the age of 15, and taken cannabis, were 12 times as likely to develop schizophrenia.

Question 4

Give two disadvantages of the interactionist approach’s explanations of schizophrenia.

Answer 4

Disadvantages:
- The original model over-emphasises vulnerability - environmental factors may make an individual more vulnerable - e.g. obstetric complications - 4 times greater according to Verdoux et al.

• Environmental factors linked to biology may be the cause - e.g. cannabis abuse leads to malfunctions within the dopamine system - 6 times the risk according to Andreasson’s longitudinal study of 45,000 participants - correlational - no causation.

Question 5

How does the interactionist approach treat schizophrenia?

Answer 5

• Eclectic therapy combining drug treatment (e.g. antipsychotics) and psychological therapy (e.g. CBT) - combining the two treatment helps to cure, or lessen, the relative symptoms caused by either the diathesis or the stress.

Question 6

Give some advantages of the interactionist treatment of schizophrenia.

Answer 6

Advantages:
- Research evidence supports its efficacy - Anderson et al. - relapse rate of less than 5% when both were combined - compared to 20% and 40% with solely psychological or medication respectively.

• A holistic approach to treating covers all the potential bases of schizophrenia - e.g. drugs may treat hallucinations and delusions whereas CBT works to tackle symptoms such as avolition and disorganised thinking.

Question 7

Give some disadvantages of the interactionist approach to treating schizophrenia.

Answer 7

Disadvantages:
- Due to the many negative side effects, which treatment to use can be a difficult decision - not helped by the fact disorganised thinking and avolition are common symptoms of schizophrenia.

• A combination of treatments may be costly and time consuming - with waiting times at an all time high, this places an unwieldy burden on public health systems - however in the long term it may be more effective.