Psychological explanations for Schiophrenia ( cognitive explanations)

Question 1

A01

Outline the Cognitive explanations for SZ-Dysfunctional thinking

Answer 1

SZ is characterised by disruption to normal throught processing
* reduced thought processing in ventral stratium is associated with negative symptoms
* reduced processing of info in temporal & cingulate gyri are associated with positive symptoms hallucinations
* This lower than usual level of info processing suggests cognition is impaired

Question 2

A01

state the 2 types of dysfunctional thought processing-Frith(1992)

Answer 2

• Metarepresentation dysfunction
• Central Control dysfunction

Question 3

A01

Outline Metarepresenation dysfucntion

Answer 3

Metarepresentation is the cognitive ability to reflect on thoughts & behaviours
dysfunction in metarepresentation disrupts our ability to recognise our own actions & thoughts as being carried out by ourselves

Question 4

A01

Outline Central Control Dysfunction

Answer 4

The Cognitive ability to supress automatic responses while we perform deliberate action
Disorganised speech & thought disorder is example of the inability to supress automatic thoughts and speech triggered by other thoughts

Question 5

A03

strength for dysfunctional information processing-striling-stroop test

strength

Answer 5

There is support for idea that info is processed diff for those with SZ
**Stirling et al **compared 30 ppl with diagnosis with SZ with 18 controls on range of cognitive tasks using Stroop test, where p had to name ink colour of colour words
PPl with SZ took twice as long to name ink colours as control group-supporting Friths theory
Counterpoint: Friths theory does not tell us origins of dysfunctional thinking, cognitive theories can explain proximal causes of SZ i.e what causes current symptoms but not distal causes i.g origin of condition