Schizophrenia Key Words Flashcards
Schizophrenia
A severe mental disorder where contact with reality and insight are impaired
Classification
The process of organising symptoms into categories based on which symptoms frequently cluster together
Diagnosis
The identification of the nature of an illness or other problem by examination of the symptoms
DSM-5
The diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th edition)
ICD-10
International classification of diseases (10th addition)
Positive symptoms
Atypical symptoms experienced in addition to normal experiences
Hallucinations
Sensory experiences that have either no basis in reality or are distorted perceptions of things that are there
Delusions
Beliefs that have no basis in reality
Negative symptoms
A typical experiences that represent the loss of an usual experience
Speech poverty
Reduced frequency and quality of speech
Avolition
Loss of motivation to carry out tasks and results in lowered activity levels
Reliability
Concerns the consistency of, in this case, diagnosis
Validity
Concerns the accuracy of, in this case, diagnosis
Co-morbidity
The occurrence of two disorders or conditions together. Where two conditions are frequently diagnosed together it calls into question the validity of classifying the two disorders seperately
Symptom overlap
When two or more conditions share the same symptoms. Where two conditions share the same symptoms it calls into questions the validity of classifying the two disorders separately
Gender bias
The tendency for diagnostic criteria to be applied differently to males and females
Culture bias SZ
The tendency to over diagnose members of other cultures as having in this case schizophrenia
Genetic explanations
A biological theory that sees genes inherited from one’s ancestors as forming the basis for in this case schizophrenia
Candidate genes
Specific genes that relate to a particular trait in this case schizophrenia
Aetiologically heterogeneous
Several different combinations of genes can lead to in this case schizophrenia
Concordance rate
A measure of similarity usually expressed as a percentage between two individuals or two sets of individuals on a given trait in this case schizophrenia
Polygenic
When a characteristic in this case schizophrenia is influenced by two or more genes
Neural correlates
Structural and functional changes in the brain that result in the characteristic symptoms of a behaviour or mental disorder in this case schizophrenia
Dopamine
A neurotransmitter that generally has an excitatory effect and is linked to the sensation of pleasure
Hyperdopaminergic
High levels of dopamine activity
Hypodopaminergic
Low levels of dopamine activity
Family dysfunction
Refers to the processes within a family that are dysfunctional eg impaired. These may be risk factors for both the development and the maintenance of schizophrenia
Schizophrenogenic mother
“Schizophrenic causing” mother who is cold rejecting and controlling
Double bind situations
Social interactions in which an individual is repeatedly exposed to conflicting instructions without having the opportunity to adequately respond to those instructions or to ignore them
Expressed emotion
The level of emotion (usually negative) expressed towards a person with schizophrenia by their family members or carers
Cognitive explanations
Focus on mental processes (such as thinking, language and attention) as underpinning behaviour in this care schizophrenia
Dysfunctional thought processing
Information processing that does not represent reality accurately and produces undesirable consequences
Metacognition
The cognitive monitoring of one’s own thought processes
Central control
The cognitive ability to suppress automatic responses while performing deliberate actions
Drug therapy
Treatment of mental disorders such as schizophrenia using medication to reduce the symptoms of the disorder
Typical antipsychotics
Dopamine antagonists; they bind but do not stimulate dopamine receptors. They work together to reduce the symptoms of schizophrenia
Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT)
A method for treating mental disorders based on both cognitive and behavioural techniques. It aims to deal with thinking such as challenging negative thoughts and beliefs and changing behaviour as a response
Family therapy
A psychological therapy carried out with all or come members of a family with the aim of improving the communications within the family
Token economy programmes
A form of behavioural modification where desirable behaviours are encouraged by the use of selective reinforcement
Primary reinforcer
“Things” that are innately reinforcing such as food or warmth
Secondary reinforcer
A stimulus (token) that reinforces a behaviour after it has been associated with a primary reinforcer (reward)
Institutionalisation
The effects of living in a hospital for a prolonged period
Interactionist approach
A broad approach to explaining behaviour, which acknowledges that a range of factors including biological and psychological factors are involved in the development of a disorder
Diathesis stress model
An interactionist approach to explaining behaviour that focuses on both an underlying vunerablility and a trigger, both of which are necessary for the onset of a disorder
Diathesis
An underlying vulnerability that can be triggered by a stress resulting in the development of disorder
Stress
A trigger which interacts with an underlying vulnerability resulting in the development of disorder
