Psychological explanations for schizophrenia: Family dysfunction Flashcards
What are schizophrenogenic mothers ?
- Fromm-reichmann
- schizophrenia is caused by mothers
- mothers who are cold, rejecting and controlling
- creates a tense and secret environment
- leads to paranoid delusions
- often children with passive fathers
What is the double blind theory ?
- Bateson
- Schizophrenia is caused by poor communication within the family
- children receive mixed messages about the right actions
- children are punished through the withdrawal of love
- these children have a poor understanding of the world
- this is only seen as a risk factor of schizophrenia
- leads to disorganised thinking and paranoid delusion
What is expressed emotion (EE) ?
- negative emotions are expressed by careers to patients
- e.g. negative criticisms, hostility towards patients and emotional over-involvement (needless selflessness)
- becomes a source of stress for patients
- could affect the relapse rates for the patients
What are 2 strengths of the family dysfunction explanation for schizophrenia ?
Iranian studies (Kalafi and Torabi)
- Found that a negative emotional climate leads to higher levels of schizophrenia relapse
- shows credibility due to correlation
- however their is the chance of intervening variables
Read =
- adults with sz are more likely to have an insecure attachment
- reviewed 46 studies of child abuse and found that 69% women and 59% male with sz experienced child abuse
- shows that there is a correlation of a lack of healthy attachments and sz
- not a full explanation due to it not affecting 100% of patients
What is a limitation of the family dysfunction explanation of schizophrenia ?
- schizophrenogenic mother is an example of parent blaming
- theory is socially sensitive as it blames the actions pf the parent which causes a lot of guilt
- gender bias - alpha bias - wholly blames the mother rather than the father
