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Violence in schizophrenia and the syndrome of disorganisation
Author(s) -
Baxter Richard
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
criminal behaviour and mental health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.63
H-Index - 54
eISSN - 1471-2857
pISSN - 0957-9664
DOI - 10.1002/cbm.158
Subject(s) - schizophrenia (object oriented programming) , psychology , impulsivity , feature (linguistics) , psychomotor learning , psychiatry , association (psychology) , clinical psychology , psychotherapist , cognition , linguistics , philosophy
There is research evidence to support a significant and important if small association between schizophrenia and violence. Further it appears that some symptoms – delusions – may be particularly relevant. They do not, however, appear to account for all the excess of violence seen. The three‐syndrome model of schizophrenia (i.e. reality distortion, disorganisation and psychomotor poverty), is invoked to try and account for much of the remaining illness‐linked violence and to explore more explanatory possibilities. Whilst ‘impulsivity’ may be one common feature of neuroanatomical and biochemical theorising it is suggested that a principal feature of the disorganisation syndrome – expressive thought disorder – might hold an important place in clinical assessments if better tools were applied in its assessment. Copyright © 1997 Whurr Publishers Ltd.