Schiz- psych explanations

Question 1

What is a schizophrenegenic mother

Answer 1

A mother who is domineering, insensitive, controlling, overprotective as well as rejecting. This type of mother may micromanage her kids and refuse to acknowledge their independence which sets up lines of faulty communication between her and the child -contributing to symptoms of schiz in a/hood. This can create excessive stress that could trigger psychotic thinking e.g. paranoia and develop into SCHIZ in adulthood.In the 1970’s this theory was broadened to include how the father and entire family could have schizophrenogenic tendencies.

Question 2

Who came up with the Schizophrenogenic mother

Answer 2

Fromm-Reichmann

Question 3

What may a schizophrenogenic mother do to her children

Answer 3

Micromanage her kids and refuse to acknowledge their independence

Question 4

What is a possible cause on the child of a schizophrenogenic mother

Answer 4

May sets up lines of faulty communication between her and the child -contributing to symptoms of schiz in a/hood. This can create excessive stress that could trigger psychotic thinking e.g. paranoia and develop into SCHIZ in adulthood.

Question 5

Who came up with the double-bind hypothesis

Answer 5

Bateson

Question 6

what did the double-bind hypothesis focus on

Answer 6

contradictory communication

Question 7

What happen when the child receives conflicting messages (double-bind hypothesis)

Answer 7

-Child becomes confused and suspicious and cannot develop an internally coherent construction of reality.-This may contribute to the development of schizophrenia in early adulthood, through paranoia and disorganised thinking.

Question 8

What approach claims that: Symptoms of schizophrenia are due to specific “cognitive deficits’’ (impaired thought processes).

Answer 8

Cognitive

Question 9

To explain schizophrenia, the cognitive approach emphasises the role of _________

Answer 9

faulty information processing

Question 10

To explain schizophrenia, the cognitive approach also claims many patients suffering from schizophrenia have ___________

Answer 10

dysfunctional thought processes.

Question 11

What is meta-representation

Answer 11

This is the ability to reflect upon thoughts, behaviours and feelings that gives us the sense of self-awareness.

Question 12

Cognitive psychology claims schizophrenia sufferers have problems with a high-level cognitive process called _________

Answer 12

meta-representation.

Question 13

What does the central monitoring system do

Answer 13

Typically, this ‘process’ labels & recognises actions and thoughts as ‘being done by me’ or ‘mine’.

Question 14

What could a malfunction in the central monitoring system explain

Answer 14

Positive symptoms of SZ

Question 15

What does the Supervisory Attention System do

Answer 15

Typically this ‘process’ responsible for generating self-initiated actions.

Question 16

What could an issue with someone’s supervisory attention system cause

Answer 16

Negative symptoms of SZ

Question 17

What does an egocentric bias cause in SZ patients

Answer 17

believe everything relates to them specifically, so they jump to false conclusions

Question 18

What could an egocentric bias lead to in SZ patientsAnd why

Answer 18

delusions of grandeur because they believe they are central to all events going on around them and are therefore the most important person on the planet.

Question 19

Evaluating psychological explanations
-Evidence from Bentall, cognitive explanation

Answer 19

P- There is evidence that supports the role of cognitive dysfunction being linked to Schiz:

E- BENTALL 1991Asked participants to either generate category items themselves (e.g. animals beginning with the letter B) or read out category items. One week later, participants were asked whether they had generated the words i) themselves,ii) read them, or iii) whether they were new.

E- Results showed schiz participants with hallucinations performed worse (i.e. were unable to identify the source of the words); than schiz patients without hallucinations and both groups performed worse that non- schiz controls

L- Hence, this research undelines the role of cognition in schiz.

Question 20

What was Bentall’s method

Answer 20

Asked participants to either generate category items themselves (e.g. animals beginning with the letter B) or read out category items. One week later, participants were asked whether they had generated the words i) themselves,ii) read them, or iii) whether they were new.

Question 21

After a week participants from Bentall’s study were asked three questions about how the words were generated
What were they

Answer 21

whether they had generated the words: i) themselves,ii) read them, or iii) whether they were new.

Question 22

What did Bentall’s results show

Answer 22

schiz participants with hallucinations performed worse (i.e. were unable to identify the source of the words); than schiz patients without hallucinations and both groups performed worse that non- schiz controls

Question 23

Which group performed worse in Bentall’s experiment

Answer 23

Sz patients with hallucinations

Question 24

Evaluating psychological explanation
- cause and effect issue, cognitive explanation

Answer 24

P- Like other explanations the cognitive account of schizophrenia suffers from a cause and effect issue.

E- Although cognitive deficits are rife with schizophrenia - these may well be the effect of schiz as opposed to a causal factor.

E-In fact both cognitive deficits and schiz could be caused by another factor completely e.g. high dopamine or urban living.

L-This implies, dysfunctional thought processes may simply be a manifestation of schiz as opposed to an instigating factor

Question 25

P- Like other explanations the cognitive account of schizophrenia suffers from a cause and effect issue. E- Although cognitive deficits are rife with schizophrenia - these may well be the effect of schiz as opposed to a causal factor. E-In fact both cognitive deficits and schiz could be caused by another factor completely e.g. high dopamine or urban livingL- ______________

Answer 25

This implies, dysfunctional thought processes may simply be a manifestation of schiz as opposed to an instigating factor

Question 26

Evaluating psychological explanation
- practical applications,

Answer 26

P- This explanation has been practically applied to help those suffering from schizophrenia

E- CBT aims to challenge and change the cognitive deficits of patients with schiz. and alter their behaviour simultaneously through developing more rational constructive ways of thinking and functioning.

E- This has been shown to be very effective with many patients with schiz

L- This implies …the cognitive dysfunctional explanation of schiz has been very useful to the 1% of the population that are suffering from schizophrenia

Question 27

Evaluation
-alternative explanations, family dysfunction

Answer 27

Alternative explanations (dopamine hypothesis) more scientific and credible

Dysfunctional family - hard to objectively measure (childhood and unconscious mind)

Dopamine hypothesis - PET scans / cerebrospinal fluid

May be redundant as more trustworthy explanations are available

Question 28

Evaluation
- Lidz, family dysfunction

Answer 28

P- research to support from Lidz, Looked at the cases of 50 schizophrenic patients and investigated their family backgrounds.

E- Forty-five (90%) were found to have seriously disturbed families. 60% of the patients had one or both parents with a serious personality disorder. Parental marriages were typically characterised by one dominant and one submissive parent (skewed families). Parents frequently made considerable emotional demands on their kids.

L- Shows support for the family dysfunction explanation

Question 29

Evaluation,
- Cause and effect, family dysfunction

Answer 29

P- Difficulty establishing cause and effect

E- Child with MH concerns: normal parental response - excessive concern and involvement

E- High EE may be response to child’s distress, not a contributing factor

L- Family behaviour may be a response, not a cause

Question 30

Evaluation,
- Scientific, cognitive explanation

Answer 30

P- Praised for being able to link physio and psycho aspects together

E- Cognitive neuroscience links brain and information processing together to explain behaviour

E- E.g., damage to hippocampus (physio) linked to memory deficits (psycho)

L- More comprehensive account of SZ

Question 31

Evaluation,
- Practical application, cognitive explanation

Answer 31

P- Practical applications

E- CBT is very effective - challenge and change cognitive deficits of patients w/ SZ

E- Helps develop more rational and constructive ways of thinking and functioning

L- Very useful to the 1% of the population with SZ