Schizophrenia Q 40
Positive symptoms of schizophrenia include which of the following?A. Hallucinations, delusions, and disorganized thinking
A. Flat affect, avolition, and anhedonia
B. Somatic delusions, echolalia, and a flat affect
C. Waxy flexibility, alogia, and apathy
D. Hallucinations, delusions, and disorganized thinking
Correct Answer: A. Hallucinations, delusions, and disorganized thinking
The positive symptoms of schizophrenia are distortions of normal functioning. Option A lists the positive symptoms of schizophrenia. The typical positive symptoms of schizophrenia, such as hallucinatory experiences or fixed delusional beliefs, tend to be very upsetting and disruptive—not a positive experience at all for you or someone you care about who is experiencing them. From the outside, a person with positive symptoms might seem distracted, as if they are listening to something (psychiatrists call this “responding to internal stimuli”).
Option A: A flat affect, alogia, apathy, avolition, and anhedonia refer to the negative symptoms. Negative symptoms list the diminution or loss of normal function. Avolition is a form of emotional or behavioral paralysis that can diminish your drive to participate in social activities and meet goals as well as your ability to complete daily tasks. Many people mistake this negative symptom for “laziness.” In Greek, an means “without” and hedone means “pleasure,” so in simple terms, anhedonia is a state where you are unable to feel pleasure. For people with schizophrenia, this can mean a lack of enthusiasm for activities, hobbies, passions, and pleasures once enjoyed.
Option B: As negative symptoms indicate deficits in functioning they are also called deficit symptoms. Negative symptoms, including lack of emotion, decreased joy or motivation, delayed speech, and difficulty beginning and sustaining activities, can be scary and extremely debilitating. The most recent version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) describes negative symptoms as “restricted emotional expression and avolition,” and includes the following five types.
Option C: Defined in DSM-5 as a “decrease in verbal output or verbal expressiveness,” alogia (also known as “poverty of speech”) can make it nearly impossible to communicate your thoughts and carry on a conversation. People with alogia may answer a monosyllabic “yes” or “no” when responding to questions and/or experience delays in getting the words out. It should be noted that these speech delays are not the same as those caused by positive symptoms like auditory or visual hallucinations and disorganized thinking.