**L3 - Psychological Explanations for Schizophrenia Flashcards
what are the TWO MAIN PSYCHOLOGICAL EXPLANATIONS FOR SZ
1) family dysfunction
2) cognitive explanations
what is the FAMILY DYSFUNCTION EXPLANATION AND WHAT ELEMENTS DOES IT CONSIST OF?
Psychologists have attempted to link SZ to CHILDHOOD and ADULT EXPERIENCES of living in a DYSFUNCTIONAL FAMILY.
The family dysfunction explanation can be EXPLAINED IN THREE WAYS:
1) the SCHIZOPHRENOGENIC MOTHER
2) DOUBLE BIND THEORY
3) EXPRESSED EMOTION
what is the schizophrenogenic mother explanation?
REICHMANN proposed a PSYCHODYNAMIC explanation for SZ based on the account she heard from HER PATIENTS about THEIR CHILDHOODS.
Most of her patients spoke about a PARTICULAR TYPE OF PARENT which she called the SCHIZOPHRENOGENIC MOTHER. The term SCHIZOPHRENOGENIC meaning schizophrenia causing.
Characteristics of this type of mother are: cold, rejecting, controlling which leads to the child developing paranoid delusions later in life thus developing SZ. In these types of families the father is OFTEN PASSIVE and not involved in child upbringing.
What is the DOUBLE BIND THEORY?
BATESON ET AL agreed that FAMILY CLIMATE is important in the development but focused more on the actual FAMILY COMMUNICATION STYLE.
The child finds themselves trapped in situations which they FEAR DOING THE WRONG THING but RECEIVE MIXED MESSAGE about what this is.
When the child continually receives mixed messages about doing right and wrong it leads to them feeling confused about the world and DEVELOPING PARANOID DELUSIONS, thus developing SZ.
What is EXPRESSED EMOTION?
Expressed emotion is the LEVEL OF EMOTION, in particular NEGATIVE EMOTION expressed towards a patient by THEIR CARERS.
Expressed emotions comes in SEVERAL FORMS, HOSTILITY TOWARDS THE PATIENT and EMOTIONAL OVER INVOLVEMENT.
High levels of expressed emotion by the caters creates a SERIOUS SOURCE OF STRESS which may be the reason for the SZ patient RELAPSING.
+ research support (family dysfunction)
+ there’s RESEARCH SUPPORT for family dysfunction as a risk factor for SZ. In TIENARI ET AL’s ADOPTION STUDY. The children who had SCHIZOPRHENIC BIOLOGICAL PARENTS were more likely to have SZ themselves than those children who didn’t have this.
However, the difference only emerged in situations where the ADOPTED FAMILY WAS RATED AS ‘DISTURBED’ or ‘DYSFUNCTIONAL’. Therefore the illness only manifested itself UNDER APPROPRIATE ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS, this shows that family dysfunction is a contributing factor to SZ.
+ READ ET AL (family dysfunction)
+ READ ET AL reviewed 46 STUDIES OF CHILD ABUSE AND SZ and concluded that 69% of ADULT WOMEN patients with a diagnosis of SZ had a HISTORY OF PHYSICAL ABUSE, SEXUAL ABUSE or BOTH IN CHILDHOOD.
For men, the figure was 59%, this study shows that FAMILY DYSFUNCTION CONTRIBUTES TO AN INDIVIDUAL DEVELOPING SZ.
+ evidence supporting double bind (family dysfunction)
There is also EVIDENCE TO SUPPORT DOUBLE BIND THEORY AND SZ.
BERGER found that schizophrenics reported a HIGHER RECALL OF DOUBLE BIND STATEMENTS BY THEIR MOTHERS than non schizophrenics, however this evidence MAY NOT BE RELIABLE as patients recall MAYBE AFFECTED BY THEIR SZ.
- not very strong evidence (family dysfunction)
- the evidence for family dysfunction as a contributing factor to developing SZ is NOT VERY STRONG. E.g LIEM measured PATTERNS OF PARENTAL COMMUNICATION in families with a SCHIZOPHRENIC CHILD and found NO DIFFERENCE WHEN COMPARED TO NORMAL FAMILIES
- not all patients relapse EE (family dysfunction)
- not all patients who live in HIGH EE FAMILIES RELAPSE, and not all patients who live in LOW EE HOMES AVOUD RELAPSE.
ALTORFER ET AL found that ONE QUARTER OF PATIENTS that they studied showed NO PSYCHOLOGICAL RESPONSES TO STRESSFUL COMMENTS FROM THEIR RELATIVES.
This shows that evidence for EE as a contributing factor towards SZ is unreliable.
- parent blaming (family dysfunction)
- one problem with family dysfunction explanations for sz is that they have LED TO PARENT BLAMING. Parents who have ALREADY SUFFERED SEEING THEIR CHILDREN DEVELOPING SZ and having to bear that responsibility for their care will also suffer FURTHER TRAUMA by being BLAMED FOR THEIR CHILDS CONDITION
what are COGNITIVE EXPLANATIONS for SZ?
Cognitive explanations for SZ focus on the ROLE OF MENTAL PROCESSES.
SZ is associated with SEVERAL TYPES OF DYSFUNCTIONAL THOUGHT PROCESSING and thus provide explanations for SZ as a whole
what are the two types of DYSFUNCTIONAL THOUGHT PROCESSING identified by FRITH ET AL?
1) METAREPRESENTATION
2) CENTRAL CONTROL
what is the METAREPRESENTATION EXPLANATION?
METAREPRESENTATION is the COGNITIVR ABILITY go REFLECT ON THOUGHTS and behaviour which ENABLES US AN INSIGHT into our own intentions and goals as well as allowing us to INTERPRET the ACTIONS OF OTHERS.
Dysfunction in this system disrupts the ability to recognise our own actions and thoughts which can cause hallucinations and delusions
What is the CENTRAL CONTROL EXPLANATION?
Central control is the COGNITIVE ABILITY TO SUPPRESS AUTOMATIC responses while we perform other actions instead.
DISORGANISED SPEECH AND THOUGHT DISORDER could result from being unable to IGNORE AUTOMATIC THOUGHTS.
Sufferers with SZ tend to experience DERAILMENT of their thoughts and what they say because there is TOO MUCH going on in their thought processes so they LOSE CONTROL OF THEIR OWN THOUGHTS
