A-Level Psychology Paper 3 - 16th June 2022 - Issues and Debates, Schizophrenia, Forensics, Gender (Q&A Latest Update 2023 A+)

What are the two subsections of psychological explanations for schizophrenia? - ANS-- family dysfunction - cognitive explanations What are the three subsections of family dyfunction as a psychological explanation for schizophrenia ? - ANS-- the schizophrenogenic mother - double-bind theory - expressed emotion Explain the schizophrenic mother as a psychological explanation for schizophrenia - ANS-Frieda Fromm-Reichmann proposed a psychodynamic explanation for schizophrenia based on accounts she heard from her parents about their childhood. She noted that many of them had a 'schizophrenogenic mother' which is when they are cold, rejecting, controlling and tends to create a family dynamic categorised by tension and secrecy. This leads to distrust that later develops into paranoid delusions and ultimately schizo. Explain the double bind theory as a psychological explanation for schizophrenia - ANSBateson et al emphasised the role of communication style within a family. The developing child regularly finds themselves trapped in situations where they fear doing the wrong thing but get mixed messages about wat this is. When they 'get it wrong' which is seemingly often they experience a withdrawal of love which leaves them thinking the world is confusing resulting in symptoms like paranoid delusions and disorganised thinking. Explain expressed emotion as a psychological explanation for schizophrenia - ANSExpressed emotion is the level of negative emotion expressed towards a patient by their carers. It includes verbal criticism of the patient, anger and rejection manifesting in hostility towards the patient and an emotional over-involvement in the life of the patient. Explain cognitive explanations as a psychological explanation for schizophrenia. Make sure you define dysfunctional thought processing. - ANS-Dysfunctional thought processing is a general term meaning information processing that is not functioning normally and produces undesirable consequences. Frith identified two types of this: - metarepresentation - allows insight into our own intentions - disrupts ability to recognize our own actions which explains hallucinations and delusions. - central control - ability to suppress automatic responses while we perform deliberate ones instead. disorganized speech and thought disorder could result from this inability to suppress automatics thoughts and speech. Give four evaluative points for psychological explanations for schizophrenia - ANS-- support for family dysfunctions as a risk factor - weak evidence for family-based explanations - strong evidence for dysfunctional information processing - evidence for biological factors is not adequately considered Explain the evaluative point of support for family dysfunctions as a risk factor - small weakness in this please mention it. as a psychological explanation for schizophrenia - ANS-A large proportion of patients report childhood sexual abuse (Read et al) or insecure attachment (Berry) which supports a link between upbringing and schizo. It is important to note that most evidence is retrospective though so it lacks validity. Explain the evaluative point of weak evidence for family based explanations as a psychological explanation for schizophrenia - ANS-Little or no direct evidence for the schizophrenogenic mother or double bind theory. An additional problem is that familybased explanations may encourage blaming of parents whose children develop schizophrenia. Explain the evaluative point of strong evidence for dysfunctional thought processing as a psychological explanation for schizophrenia - ANS-Stirling et al - patients with schizophrenia took longer to complete the stroop task showing impairment to cognition. However this strong support for cognitive explanations is undermined by the fact that they do not tell us about the origin of symptoms. Explain the evaluative point that evidence for biological factors is not adequately considered as a psychological explanation for schizophrenia - ANS-Strong support for biological explanations challenge value of psychological explanations. However it does seem likely that schizophrenia has important psychological and biological factors so we cannot eliminate psychological factors. What are anti-psychotic drugs? - ANS-Drugs used to reduce the intensity of symptoms, in particular the positive symptoms, of psychotic conditions like schizophrenia. What are the typical antipsychotics? When did they start? What is the main one? How do they work? What symptom does it greatly reduce? - ANS-Been used since the 1950s. Chlorpromazine is the key one. Link to the dopamine hypothesis. They work by acting as antagonists in the dopamine system by blocking the dopamine receptors in the synapses of the brain, reducing the action of dopamine. Reduces symptoms like hallucinations. What are atypical antipsychotics?...