alogia

A negative symptom in schizophrenia, marked by poverty of speech and of speech content.

anhedonia

A negative symptom in schizophrenia or a symptom in depression in which the individual is unable to feel pleasure.

antipsychotic drugs

Psychoactive drugs, such as Thorazine, that reduce psychotic symptoms but have side effects resembling symptoms of neurological diseases.

asociality

A negative symptom of schizophrenia marked by an inability to form close relationships and to feel intimacy.

atypical antipsychotic drugs

Any of several drugs, such as clozapine, used to treat schizophrenia that produce fewer motor side effects than traditional antipsychotics while reducing positive and disorganized symptoms at least as effectively; may, however, be associated with increased and serious side effects of other varieties.

avolition

A negative symptom in schizophrenia in which the individual lacks interest and drive.

brief psychotic disorder

A disorder in which a person has a sudden onset of psychotic symptoms—incoherence, loose associations, delusions, hallucinations—immediately after a severely disturbing event; the symptoms last more than a few hours but no more than 2 weeks. Compare schizophreniform disorder.

catatonia

Constellation of schizophrenic symptoms including repetitive, peculiar, complex gestures, and in some cases, an almost manic increase in overall activity level.

catatonic immobility

A fixity of posture, sometimes grotesque, maintained for long periods, with accompanying muscular rigidity, trancelike state of consciousness, and waxy flexibility.

catatonic schizophrenia

A subtype of schizophrenia whose primary symptoms alternate between stuporous immobility and excited agitation.

cognitive enhancement therapy (CET)

Also known as cognitive training, treatment that seeks to improve basic cognitive functions such as verbal learning ability in schizophrenic individuals, meanwhile reducing symptoms as well.

delusional disorder

A disorder in which the individual has persistent delusions and is very often contentious but has no disorganized thinking or hallucinations.

delusions

Beliefs contrary to reality, firmly held in spite of evidence to the contrary and common in paranoid disorders: of control, belief that one is being manipulated by some external force such as radar, television, or a creature from outer space; of grandeur, belief that one is an especially important or powerful person; of persecution, belief that one is being plotted against or oppressed by others.

dementia praecox

An older term for schizophrenia, believed then to be an incurable and progressive deterioration of mental functioning beginning in adolescence.

disorganized behavior

Symptom of schizophrenia that is marked by odd behaviors that do not appear organized, such as bouts of agitation, unusual dress, or childlike,

silly behavior.

disorganized speech

(thought disorder). Speech found in schizophrenia patients that is marked by poorly organized ideas and speech that is difficult for others to understand.

disorganized schizophrenia

In this subtype of schizophrenia (formerly called hebephrenia) the person has diffuse and regressive symptoms, is given to silliness, facial grimaces, and inconsequential rituals, and has constantly changeable moods and poor hygiene.

disorganized symptoms

Broad category of symptoms in schizophrenia that includes disorganized speech, disorganized thinking, and disorganized behavior.

dopamine theory

The view that schizophrenia arises from an increase in the number of dopamine receptors.

expressed emotion (EE)

Hostility, criticism, and emotional overinvolvement directed from other people toward the patient, usually within a family.

flat affect

A lack of outward expression of emotion.

grandiose delusions

Found in paranoid schizophrenia, delusional disorder, and mania, an exaggerated sense of one’s importance, power, knowledge, or identity. See also delusions.

hallucinations

Perceptions in any sensory modality without relevant and adequate external stimuli.

ideas of reference

Delusional thinking that reads personal significance into seemingly trivial remarks or activities of others and completely unrelated events.

inappropriate affect

Emotional responses that are out of context, such as laughter when hearing sad news.

loose associations

(derailment). In schizophrenia, an aspect of disorganized thinking wherein the patient has difficulty sticking to one topic and drifts off on a train of associations evoked by an idea from the past.

negative symptoms

Behavioral deficits in schizophrenia, such as flat affect and apathy. Compare positive symptoms.

paranoid schizophrenia

A type of schizophrenia in which the patient has numerous systematized delusions as well as hallucinations and ideas of reference. He or she may also be agitated, angry, and argumentative.

personal therapy

A broad-spectrum cognitive behavioral approach to the problems faced by schizophrenia patients who have been discharged from the hospital; includes learning how to recognize inappropriate affect and how to notice small signs of relapse, cognitive restructuring to work at lowering stress levels, and musclerelaxation techniques to detect and control anger and

anxiety.

positive symptoms

Behavioral excesses in schizophrenia, such as hallucinations and bizarre behavior. Compare negative symptoms.

prefrontal cortex

The region of the frontal lobe of the brain that helps maintain an image of threats and rewards faced, as well as maintain focus and plan relevant to those threats and rewards.

residual schizophrenia

Diagnosis given to patients who have had an episode of schizophrenia but who presently show no psychotic symptoms, though signs of the disorder do exist.

schizoaffective disorder

Diagnosis applied when a patient has symptoms of both mood disorder and either schizophreniform disorder or schizophrenia.

schizophrenia

A group of psychotic disorders characterized by major disturbances in thought, emotion, and behavior; disordered thinking in which ideas are not logically related; faulty perception and attention; bizarre disturbances in motor activity; flat or inappropriate emotions; reduced tolerance for stress in interpersonal relations and withdrawal from people and reality, often into a fantasy life of delusions and hallucinations. See schizoaffective disorder, schizophreniform disorder, and brief psychotic disorder.

schizophreniform disorder

Diagnosis given to people who have all the symptoms of schizophrenia, for more than 2 weeks but less than 6 months. See brief psychotic disorder.

social selection theory

An attempt to explain the correlation between social class and schizophrenia by arguing that people with schizophrenia tend to move downward in socioeconomic status. Compare sociogenic hypothesis.

social skills training

Behavior therapy procedures, such as modeling and behavior rehearsal, for teaching socially unknowledgeable individuals how to meet others, talk to them and maintain eye contact, give and receive criticism, offer and accept compliments, make requests and express feelings, and otherwise improve their relations with other people.

sociogenic hypothesis

An idea that seeks causes in social conditions, for example, that being in a low social class can cause one to become schizophrenic. Compare social selection theory.

undifferentiated schizophrenia

Diagnosis for patients whose symptoms either do not fit any listed category of schizophrenia or meet the criteria for more than one subtype.