Schizophrenia (definitions) Flashcards
Delusion
A belief which has no basis in reality (positive symptom)
Hallucination
A sensory perception which has no basis in/distorts reality (positive symptom)
Speech poverty
A reduction in the quality and/or quantity of verbal output (negative symptom)
Avolition
The loss of motivation and therefore lowered activity levels (negative symptom)
Positive symptom
A symptom experienced in addition to normal, healthy experiences
Negative symptom
A symptom which involves the loss of normal, healthy experiences
Polygenic
A condition which is affected by multiple different genes
Hyperdopaminergia
A high level of dopamine activity in the subcortex, leading to positive symptoms
Hypodopaminergia
A low level of dopamine activity in the cortex, leading to negative symptoms
Metarepresentation
The ability to distinguish between and understand the actions of yourself and others
Central control
The ability to repress automatic responses to stimuli
Cognitive neuroscience
The scientific study of the influence of brain structures and neurological symptoms on mental processes
Acute stage
The first stage of psychosis ever/after relapse after not having symptoms
Maintenance stage
The stable stage in which the goal is to minimise symptoms and improve affected areas of the patient’s life
First generation anti-psychotics
The first type of anti-psychotic invented, a.k.a. typical anti-psychotics, which target dopamine receptors e.g. haloperidol
Second generation anti-psychotics
The second type of anti-psychotic invented, a.k.a. a-typtical anti-psychotics, which target a range of neurotransmitters e.g.risperidone
Dopamine antagonist
A drug which works by blocking dopamine receptors
The Cochrane Collaboration
An organisation which conducts reviews of medical trials and is independent of drug companies
Neural correlate
A measurement of the structure or function of the brain which is correlated with an experience
Normalisation
Empathising with the patient and offering normal instances of their symptoms to make them feel more normal
Homework (CBT)
A patient being instructed to collect information or try things out in order to test their beliefs
Expressed emotion
The level of negative emotion expressed towards a patient by their carers
Family therapy
A psychological therapy carried out with the whole family with the aim of educating, improving communication, and reducing stress
Token economies
A behavioural therapy where desirable behaviours are reinforced by the use of tokens, which can then be exchanged for privileges
Classification
The process of organising symptoms into categories based on which symptoms cluster together in sufferes
False positive (in diagnosis)
When a patient is diagnosed with an illness which they don’t have
False negative (in diagnosis)
When a patient is not diagnosed with an illness which they do have
Symptom overlap
A problem for diagnosing disorders in which some of the symptoms of one disorder also occur in another disorder
Co-morbidity
A problem for diagnosing disorders in which patients have some or all of the symptoms of more than one disorder
Family dysfunction
Abnormal processes within the family such as poor communication, high EE, and cold parenting which act as risk factors for the development and maintenance of schizophrenia
NMS
Neuroleptic malignant syndrome - a side effect of typical anti-psychotics which can result in high temperatures, delirium, comas, or death
Double-bind theory
Poor communication within families, in terms of a child receiving mixed messages and feeling unable to do the right thing, is a key risk factor for schizophrenia
Clozapine
An a-typical anti-psychotic which blinds to dopamine, serotonin, and glutamate receptors to improve mood and cognitive functioning, and reduce depression in patients
Cultural bias (in diagnosis)
African Americans are several times more likely to be diagnosed with schizophrenia than white people. This may be partially due to the normalisation of hearing voices in African cultures, and hence an increase in reporting of such experiences.
CBT
A therapy based on cognitive and behavioural techniques which identifies irrational thoughts, challenges them, and replaces them
The interactionist approach
An approach to explaining schizophrenia which acknowledges the role of biological and psychological factors
Gender bias (in diagnoses)
Men are more likely to be diagnosed with schizophrenia than women. This may be explained by the fact that schizophrenic women typically have better interpersonal functioning than men, in terms of maintaining a job and relationships, and are hence under-diagnosed.
