psychological therapies Flashcards
What are some psychological therapies?
CBT
Family therapy
Token economies
What is CBT?
Helps patients identify irrational thoughts, try to change them
Argument about how likely beliefs are
Makes symptoms easier to cope with
How does CBT help?
Patients make sense of how delusions impact their behaviour
Understand where symptoms come from can be helpful - reduces anxiety and fear
Delusions can be challenged so they know their beliefs aren’t reality
Describe Turkington’s example of CBT
Patient believes they’re observed by mafia
Therapist asks how they know this
What is family therapy?
Aims to improve communication in families
Some therapists see family as root cause - double bind, SZ mother
Most want to reduce family stress which contributes to relapse, reduce EE
What are strategies identified by Pharaoh by which family therapists improve the functioning of patients?
Form therapeutic alliance with all family members
Reduce stress of caring for SZ relative
Improve ability of family to solve problems
Reduce family guilt
Maintain balance between care for family member and own lives
Improve family’s beliefs about SZ
How do Pharaoh’s strategies help?
Reduce levels of stress and EE
Increase chances of patients complying with medication
Results in less relapse
What are token economies?
Manage behaviour of institutionalised patients with maladaptive behaviour
Common for them to develop bad hygiene
Modifying these habits improves quality of life
What are tokens?
Given to patients for desirable behaviour targeted for reinforcement
Making the bed etc
Immediacy is important - prevents delay discounting, reduced effect of delayed reward
What are rewards?
Tokens swapped for tangible rewards
Tokens are secondary reinforcers - only have value due to rewards
Sweets cigarettes etc
Evaluation - evidence for effectiveness
Jauhar - reviewed CBT studies, has a significant but small effect on symptoms
Pharaoh - moderate evidence that family therapy reduces readmission, results of studies were inconsistent however
Moderate support
Evaluation - treatments improve quality of life but don’t cure
Explain how each therapy helps
Do not cure SZ - bio treatments do better at reducing symptom severity
Evaluation - ethical issues
Token economies - rewards not given to those with severe symptoms as they struggle to comply
CBT challenges freedom of thought
Evaluation - quality of evidence for effectiveness
Small scale studies have found better results about effectiveness
Lack control group, no random allocation if there is one
Evaluation - alternative psychological treatments
National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence recommends art therapy
