psychological explanation for SZ

Question 1

what is family dysfunction

Answer 1

sz onset caused by living in a dysfunctional family

Question 2

schizophrenogenic mother ao1

Answer 2

Fromm-Reichmann
sz causing mother
mother is cold, rejecting + controlling + creates a family climate characterised by tension and secrecy
leads to distrust which develops into paranoid delusions( belief of being persecuted by another) = SZ

Question 3

double bind theory ao1

Answer 3

Bateson et al 1972
emphasis on role of communication in fam
child fears they’re doing wrong but receive mixed messages from fam + feels unable to comment on unfairness of the situation + seek clarification
when they’re wrong - punished by love withdrawal = sees world as confusing dangerous
symptoms = disorgansied thinklnig + paranoid delusions

Question 4

expressed emotion ao1

Answer 4

level of emotion -particularly -ve exprssed towards sz patient by fam members
- verbal criticism + occasional violence
- hostility towards person, anger + rejection
- emotional overinvolvement in life of person + needles self sacrifice

high levels of EE = serious stress for sz person
primary explanation for relapse

Question 5

evaluate family dysfunction explanation

Answer 5

research support:
indicators of fam dysfunction include insecure attachement + childhood trauma
Read et al 2005 - adults with SZ are disproportionately likely to have insecure attachment, type C/D
69% women and 59% men with sz have a history of physical/ sexual abuse
fam dysfunction makes ppl more vulnerable to sz

limit:
poor evidence base
evidence which support childhood fam based stress but none for sz mother / double bind
both these theories based on clinical observations of ppl with sz + informal assessment of mums personalities - not SYSTEMATIC EVIDENCE

limit- socially sensitive
typicallt blames the parent esp mother

Question 6

what is a cognitive explanation

Answer 6

focuses on the role of mental processes

Question 7

dysfunctional thinking ao1

Answer 7

reduced thought processing in the ventral striatum associated with -ve symptoms
rediced processing of info in temporal and cingulate gyri - associated with hallucinations = simon et al 2015
low level of info procsessinng suggest cognition is impaired

Question 8

what is metarepresentation dysfunction

Answer 8

metarepresentation
cognitive ability to reflect on thoughts and behaviour - allows us insight into our own thoughts and goals + allows us to interpret actions of others.

dysfuntion in this = disrupts ability to recognise our own actions and thoughts as being carried out by ourselves rather than someone else
explains hearing hallucinations + delusions

Question 9

what is central control dysfunction

Answer 9

frith et al
issue with cognitive ability to suppress automatic responses while we perform deliberate actions
can explain speech poverty+ thought disorder

Question 10

strength of cognitive exp ao3

Answer 10

research support
evidence for dysfunctional thought processing - stirling et al

compared performance on a range of cognitive tasks
30 ps with SZ, control grp 30ps no SZ
included the stroop task
ps have to name the font colour of colour-words - have to suppress tendency to read words aloud

supports Firth et als central control theory
ppl with SZ took over as twice as long on average to name font colours
means cognitive processes of ppl with SZ are impaired

Question 11

limitation of cognitive exp

Answer 11

only explain the proximal origins

only explain what is happening now to produce symptoms - NOT what initially caused the condition
genetics + family dysfunction are better at this
so cog exp only provides partial exp for SZ