A2 Aqa Psychology, Schizophrenia

Front 1

What is schizophrenia?

Back 1

- a severe mental illness where contact with reality and insight are impaired, an example of psychosis

- 1% of population;men>women

- symptoms interfere with everyday tasks

Front 2

What is the classification of mental disorders?

Back 2

- process of organising symptoms into categories based on which symptoms cluster in sufferers

Front 3

What is the ICD-10?

Back 3

The World Health Organisation's International Classification of Disease edition 10

Front 4

What is the DSM-5?

Back 4

American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual edition 5

Front 5

How does the classification of schizophrenia differ between ICD-10 and DSM-5?

Back 5

DSM-5: one positive symptom (delusions/hallucinations) must be present

ICD-10: 2+ negative symptoms (flattened affect) must be present

- ICD-10: recognises subtypes of schizophrenia

Front 6

What are the three subtypes of schizophrenia classified by ICD-10?

Back 6

Paranoid schizophrenia: characterised by powerful delusions and hallucinations

Hebephrenic schizophrenia: characterised primarily by negative symptoms

Catatonic schizophrenia: disturbance to movement;suffer immobile/overractive

Front 7

What are positive symptoms?

Back 7

- atypical symptoms experienced in addition to normal experiences.

- include hallucinations and delusions

Front 8

What are hallucinations?

Back 8

- type of positive symptom of schizophrenia

- sensory experiences of stimuli that have no basis in reality/distorted perceptions of things

- e.g hearing voices/seeing things that are not there

Front 9

What are delusions?

Back 9

- type of positive symptom of schizophrenia

- beliefs that have no basis in reality e.g. sufferer is someone else or is a victim of a conspiracy (being Jesus)

Front 10

What are negative symptoms?

Back 10

- atypical experiences that represent loss of a usual experience e.g. clear thinking or 'normal' levels of motivation.

- e.g. avolition/speech poverty

Front 11

What is avolition?

Back 11

- type of negative symptom of schizophrenia

- loss of motivation to carry out tasks and results in lowered activity levels

Andreason: three identifying signs=poor hygiene/lack of persistence in work/lack of energy

Front 12

What is speech poverty?

Back 12

- type of negative symptom of schizophrenia

- reduced frequency and quality of speech

DSM-5: emphasises speech disorganisation=positive symptom

Front 13

What are the evaluation points of the diagnosis and classification of schizophrenia?

Back 13

- reliability

- validity

- co-morbidity

- symptom overlap

- gender bias in diagnosis

- cultural bias in diagnosis

Front 14

What is the definition of reliability in terms of the diagnosis of schizophrenia?

Back 14

- extent to which two or more mental health professionals get the same diagnosis for the same patient

Front 15

What is the 'reliability' evaluative point of the diagnosis and classification of schizophrenia?

Back 15

Elie Cheniaux: two psychiatrists diagnose 100 patients with ICD/DSM=poor inter-rater reliability (DSM=26;ICD=44) vs (DSM=13;ICD=24)=reliability low

Front 16

What is criterion validity?

Back 16

Cheniaux: When assessment systems come to the same diagnosis for the same patient

Front 17

What is the 'validity' evaluative point of the diagnosis and classification of schizophrenia?

Back 17

- schizophrenia is more diagnosed with ICD than DSM=over/under diagnosed

- validity low

Front 18

What is co-morbidity?

Back 18

- two or more conditions occur together

Front 19

What is the 'co-morbidity' evaluative point of the diagnosis and classification of schizophrenia?

Back 19

- questions validity of classification and diagnosis (might be single condition)

Buckley: 1/2 diagnosed schizophrenics also diagnosed with depression

Front 20

What is the 'symptom overlap' evaluative point of the diagnosis and classification of schizophrenia?

Back 20

- schizophrenia and bipolar disorder=positive symptoms (delusions)/negative (avolition)

-questions validity

- under ICD=schizophrenic;under DSM=bipolar

- may be one condition

Front 21

What is the 'gender bias in diagnosis' evaluative point of the diagnosis and classification of schizophrenia?

Back 21

Longnecker: studies of schizo prevalence=since 1980s men>women diagnosis

- men may be genetically vulnerable

- females function better=bias practitioners to under-diagnose

Front 22

What is the 'cultural bias in diagnosis' evaluative point of the diagnosis and classification of schizophrenia?

Back 22

- Africans>white people (schizo diagnosis)

- rates in Africa not high=not genetic

- + symptoms (hearing voices) accepted in African culture=report to psychiatrist in Western culture=bizarre

Escobar: mainly white psychiatrists over-interpret symptoms/distrust honesty of black people in diagnosis

Front 23

What is the genetic basis of schizophrenia?

Back 23

- runs in family;weak evidence (share environ.)

- twin studies: up genetic similar=up risk

- many genes linked to inheritance

- polygenic/aetiologically heterogeneous

Front 24

What did Ripke find about the genetic basis of schizophrenia?

Back 24

- study combining data from genome studies

- 37,000 patients vs 113,000 controls

- 108 genetic variations identified

- effect on neurotransmitter functioning

Front 25

How are neurotransmitters involved in the dopamine hypothesis?

Back 25

- brain chemical messengers work different in schizophrenic brain e.g. dopamine (important in function of brain systems=symptoms)