Schizophrenia Spectrum & Other Psychotic Disorders – Key Vocabulary

A comprehensive set of vocabulary flashcards covering definitions, clinical features, historical figures, etiological theories, and treatments related to schizophrenia spectrum and other psychotic disorders.

Psychosis

A gross departure from reality characterized by hallucinations, delusions, and/or bizarre behavior.

Hallucination

A sensory experience occurring without external stimulus (e.g., hearing voices when no one is speaking).

Delusion

A strongly held, inaccurate belief that persists despite clear contradictory evidence.

Schizophrenia

A pervasive psychotic disorder involving disturbed thought, emotion, and behavior with positive, negative, and disorganized symptoms.

Positive Symptoms

Excesses or distortions of normal functions, such as hallucinations, delusions, and disorganized speech.

Negative Symptoms

Absence or reduction of normal behaviors, including avolition, alogia, anhedonia, and affective flattening.

Disorganized Symptoms

Erratic speech, emotion, or behavior, including cognitive slippage, tangentiality, loose associations, and catatonia.

Avolition

Lack of initiation and persistence in goal-directed activities; apathy.

Alogia

Relative absence or poverty of speech.

Anhedonia

Inability to experience pleasure or interest in normally enjoyable activities.

Affective Flattening

Diminished emotional expression; limited range and intensity of affect.

Catatonia

Marked motor abnormalities such as immobility, excessive motor activity, posturing, or echolalia/echopraxia.

DSM-5 Criterion A (Schizophrenia)

Requires at least two of five core symptoms (delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech, disorganized/catatonic behavior, or negative symptoms) for one month.

Schizophreniform Disorder

Psychotic symptoms identical to schizophrenia lasting 1–6 months, often with good functional recovery.

Brief Psychotic Disorder

Sudden onset of psychotic symptoms lasting 1 day to <1 month, followed by full return to premorbid functioning.

Schizoaffective Disorder

Schizophrenia criteria plus a major mood episode, with at least 2 weeks of psychosis in the absence of mood symptoms.

Delusional Disorder

One or more persistent, non-bizarre delusions for ≥1 month without other schizophrenia symptoms.

Erotomanic Delusion

False belief that another person, usually of higher status, is in love with the individual.

Grandiose Delusion

False belief of possessing great talent, insight, or having made an important discovery.

Persecutory Delusion

Belief that one is being conspired against, cheated, followed, or harmed.

Somatic Delusion

False belief involving bodily functions or sensations (e.g., infestation, deformity).

Substance/Medication-Induced Psychotic Disorder

Hallucinations or delusions triggered by intoxication, withdrawal, or exposure to a substance capable of producing such symptoms.

Psychotic Disorder Due to Another Medical Condition

Prominent hallucinations or delusions directly resulting from a medical illness.

Emil Kraepelin

Psychiatrist who coined 'dementia praecox' and first outlined catatonia, hebephrenia, and paranoia subtypes.

Eugen Bleuler

Introduced the term 'schizophrenia,' meaning ‘splitting of the mind.’

Dopamine Hypothesis

Theory that overactive dopamine neurotransmission contributes to schizophrenia; supported by agonist/antagonist drug effects.

Hypofrontality

Reduced activity in the frontal lobes observed in many individuals with schizophrenia.

Enlarged Ventricles

Structural brain abnormality featuring increased cerebrospinal fluid spaces linked to schizophrenia.

Smooth-Pursuit Eye Movement Deficit

Difficulty steadily tracking moving objects; considered a behavioral endophenotype for schizophrenia.

Endophenotype

Measurable, heritable trait (e.g., eye-tracking deficit) that links genetic risk to clinical disorder.

Expressed Emotion (EE)

Family environment marked by criticism, hostility, or emotional overinvolvement; high EE predicts relapse.

Diathesis-Stress Model

Framework positing that genetic vulnerability (diathesis) interacts with stress to cause schizophrenia.

Tardive Dyskinesia

Involuntary, repetitive movements resulting from long-term antipsychotic use.

Token Economy

Behavioral inpatient program where patients earn tokens for adaptive behaviors, exchangeable for rewards.

First-Generation (Typical) Antipsychotics

Older neuroleptic medications (e.g., haloperidol) that primarily reduce positive symptoms but carry high side-effect risk.

Second-Generation (Atypical) Antipsychotics

Newer antipsychotics (e.g., clozapine) targeting multiple neurotransmitters with fewer motor side effects.

Compliance

Adherence to prescribed medication; often problematic in schizophrenia due to side effects and insight issues.

Prodromal Phase

Early period of subtle symptoms (e.g., social withdrawal, odd beliefs) preceding full psychotic onset.

Neuroleptic

Another term for antipsychotic medication, emphasizing its ability to reduce psychotic symptoms.

Token Economy

Behavioral system on inpatient units that reinforces appropriate behavior through token rewards.

Illness Management and Recovery (IMR)

Psychosocial program teaching goal setting, medication adherence, and coping to enhance functional recovery.

Family Behavioral Therapy

Intervention educating relatives, reducing EE, and improving communication to lower relapse rates.

Vocational Rehabilitation

Services that help individuals with schizophrenia develop job skills and obtain employment.

High-Risk Children

Youth with genetic or environmental vulnerability targeted for preventive interventions against schizophrenia.