AB Psych: Module 2

schizophrenia

a severe form of abnormal behavior that encompasses what most of us have known to know as madness

delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech, grossly disorganized behavior, and negative symptoms

two (or more) of the following, each present for a significant portion of time during a 1-month period (or less if successfully treated). at least one of these must be (1), (2), or (3)

delusions

incorrect beliefs that persists despite evidence to the contrary

paranoid delusions

involves the theme of being persecuted by others

delusions of control

revolve around the belief that the person is being controlled by other people (or aliens)

delusions of grandeur

is believing oneself to be significantly more powerful, knowledgeable, or capable than is actually the case

delusions of reference

the belief that external events have special meaning for the individual

hallucinations

are sensations so vivid that the perceived objects or events seem real even though they are not

disorganized thinking (speech)

people with schizophrenia can sometimes speak incoherently, although they may not necessarily be aware that other people cannot understand what they are saying

word salad

putting together meaningless word that cant be understood

disorganized behavior

behavior that is so unfocused and disconnected from a goal that the person cannot successfully accomplish a basic task or the behavior is inappropriate in the situation

flat affect

when a person does not display a great range of emotion and hence often seems emotionally neutral

alogia

poverty of speech, may respond slowly or minimally to questions and generally speak less than do most other people

avolition

the term for difficulty in initiating or following through with activities

unspecified

clinicians may use this diagnosis if theres insufficient information to determine a more specific subtype, or if the individuals symptoms don’t fully align with criteria for a specific schizo diagnosis

premorbid phase

before symptoms develop people may display personality characteristics that later evolve into negative symptoms

predromal phase

occurs before onset of a psychological disorder symptoms may develop gradually but do not meet all the criteria for the disorder

active phase

a person has full blown positive and negative symptoms that meet all of the criteria for the disorder