Schizophrenia

Question 1

Classification of mental disorder

Answer 1

The process of organising symptoms into categories based on which symptoms frequently cluster together

Question 2

Schizophrenia

Answer 2

A severe mental disorder where contact with reality and insight are impaired, eg psychosis

Question 3

Positive symptoms of schizophrenia

Answer 3

Atypical symptoms experienced in addition to normal experiences they include hallucinations and delusions

Question 4

Hallucinations

Answer 4

Positive schizophrenia symptoms. They are sensory experiences that have either no basis in reality or are distorter perceptions of things that are there

Question 5

Delusions

Answer 5

A positive symptom of schizophrenia they involve beliefs that basis in reality e.g. a person believing that they are someone else or a victim of conspiracy.

Question 6

Negative symptoms of schizophrenia

Answer 6

Atypical experiences that represent the loss of a usual experience such as a loss of clear thinking or a loss of motivation

Question 7

Speech poverty

Answer 7

A negative symptom of schizophrenia involving reduced frequency and quality of speech

Question 8

Avolition

Answer 8

A negative characteristic of schizophrenia involves a loss of motivation to carry out tasks and results in lowered activity levels.

Question 9

Comorbidity

Answer 9

Comorbidity describes people who suffer from two or more mental disorders.This makes it more difficult to confidently diagnose schizophrenia.

Question 10

Symptom overlap

Answer 10

Occurs when two or more conditions share symptoms where conditions share many symptoms this calls into question the validity of classifying the two disorders separately.

Question 11

issues in diagnosis - Good reliability

Answer 11

Osorio et al (2019) reported excellent reliability for the diagnosis of sz of 180 individuals using DSM-5, pairs of interviewers achieved inter-rater reliability of +.97 ant test re-test reliability of +.92.

Question 12

issues in diagnosis - Low Validity

Answer 12

Criterion Validity, Cheniaux et al (2009) had two psychiatrists independently assess the same 100 clients using ICD-10 and DSM-5 criteria and found that 68 were diagnosed with sz under the ICD and 39 under DSM.

Question 13

issues in diagnosis - Low Validity Counterpoint

Answer 13

Osorio et al reported above there was an excellent agreement between clinicians when they used two measures to diagnosis both derived from the DSM.

Question 14

issues in diagnosis - Comorbidity

Answer 14

Sz is commonly diagnosed as with other conditions, meaning sz may not exist as a single condition.

Question 15

issues in diagnosis - Culture bias

Answer 15

Things like hearing voices in the diagnosis of sz maybe abnormal in western cultures in other cultures its a norm, even a positive thing.

Question 16

Antipsychotics

Answer 16

Drugs used to reduce the intensity of symptoms in particular the positive symptoms of psychotic disorders like schizophrenia

Question 17

Typical antipsychotics

Answer 17

The first generations of drugs for schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders having been used since the 1950s they work as dopamine antagonists and include chlorpromazine

Question 18

Atypical antipsychotics

Answer 18

Drugs for schizophrenia developed after typical antipsychotics; they typically target a range of neurotransmitters such as dopamine and serotonin. Such as clozapine and risperidone

Question 19

Typical antipsychotics Dosage

Answer 19

Been around since the 50s includes chlorpromazine which can be taken as tablets syrup or injection. If taken orally it is administered daily up to a maximum of 1000 mg although initially doses are much smaller and slowly increased .