Schizophrenia

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Negative Symptoms

Affective flattening.

Reduction in the range and intensity of emotional expression, including facial expression, voice tone, eye contact and body language.

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Negative Symptom

Alogia (poverty of speech)

Lessening of speech fluency and productivity, thought to reflect slowing or blocked thoughts; often manifested as short, empty replies to questions.

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Negative Symptom

Avolition

The reduction, difficulty or inability to initiate and persist in goal-directed behavior. Often mistaken for apparent disinterest.

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Examples of Avolition

No longer interested in going out with friends

No longer interested in activities that the person used to show enthusiasm

No longer interested in anything

Sitting in the house for hours or days doing nothing

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Disorganized Symptoms

This one is somewhat new and may not be considered valid.

It is thought disorder, confusion, disorientation and memory problems.

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Summary of Negative Symptoms

Lack of emotion

Low energy

Lack of interest in life

Affective flattening

Alogia

Inappropriate social skills

Inability to make friends

Social isolation

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Cognitive Symptoms

Difficulties in concentration and memory:

Disorganized thinking

Slow thinking

Difficulty understanding

Poor concentration

Poor memory

Difficulty expressing thoughts

Difficulty integrating thoughts, feelings, behaviors

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FYI: Negative Symptoms

Currently there is no treatment that has a consistent impact on negative symptoms.

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Types of Schizophrenia

Paranoid

Hebephrenic

Catatonic

Residual

Schizoaffective

Undifferentiated

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Paranoid Schizophrenia

Persons are very suspicious of others and often have grand schemes of persecution at the root of their behavior.

During this phase they may have hallucinations and frequent delusions.

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Hebephrenic Schizophrenia

AKA disorganized schizophrenia; characterized by emotionless, incongruous, or silly behavior, intellectual deterioration, frequently beginning insidiously during adolescence.