Talk Therapy to help Schizophrenics?

Article/Link: "Talk Therapy Lifts Severe Schizophrenics" by Benedict Carey

Published: Oct. 3, 2011 ; Accessed: Oct. 19, 2011

Summary: The linked article talks about how scientists have discovered a method for Schizophrenic patients to potentially improve their lives. Such patients are known to be isolated and withdrawn. Scientists think that talk therapy (originally invented to help depression) can help bring them out of this, making them social and interactive. In the study, the therapy helped motivate them as well as showed reduced symptoms. Though the researchers doubt that community therapists will be able to bring about similar levels of improvement as the experts who performed the tests. One example they use is of a woman who made coffee at the clinic as part of the therapy and eventually got involved with the community clinic going on to cook for them. When the patients receiving the talk therapy along with their usual medication were compared with patients on just the standard treatment, the talk therapy patients’ functionality level shot up about 10 points, which is a great amount.

Response: This article relates to Bromden because he shows many signs and could potentially be schizophrenic. Some signs of Schizophrenia relating to him are: social withdrawal, hostility or suspiciousness (aimed at Nurse Ratched and the Combine), flat, expressionless gaze (which he does to signify that he cannot hear), inability to cry or express joy (many on the ward refrain from laughing but they do cry, the book doesn’t show Bromden crying or laughing until the end). Having one or two of these symptoms doesn’t mean one’s Schizohrenic, but having so many could imply something. If the talk therapy mentioned in the article truly works, it would be a great step forward for people dealing with Schizophrenia. To be able to go out and function in the world, be employable, and be able to fit in to society better. If this therapy is legitimate, it could improve their standards of living many times over. In some ways, maybe McMurphy potentially helped Bromden get better in an unorganized talk therapy..?

Vocabulary:

Word 1: intervention

a. "If there’s an intervention out there that can make a difference, I think that’s an incredibly important development.”

b. intervention: the act of intervening (involving oneself in a situation so as to alter or hinder an action or development). Latin intervenire to come between, from inter "between" + venire "to come". First known use: 1587 (merriam-webster.com)

c. An intervention is required to get the school to stop serving bad food.


Word 2: cognitive [techniques] (noun)
a. "In previous studies, researchers have used cognitive techniques to help people with schizophrenia manage their hallucinations and sharpen their attention and memory."
b. cognitive: an interdisciplinary science that draws on many fields in developing theories about human perception, thinking, and learning. Middle English cognicion, from Anglo-French, from Latin cognition-, cognitio, from cognoscere "to become acquainted with, know," from co- + gnoscere "to come to know". First known use of cognitive: 1586; first know use of cognitive science: 1975 (merriam-webster.com)
c. We were talking about cognitive psychology in class to determine how or why we act the way we do.


Word 3: parlaying
a. "One woman, who had been frequently hospitalized before the study, began making coffee at the clinic as a part of therapy, then took her cart to a community clinic, parlaying that into a job as a cook."
b. parlaying: to parlay (increase or otherwise transform into something of much greater value). French paroli, noun, parlay, from Italian dialect, plural ofparolo, perhaps from paro equal, from Latin par. First known use: 1828. (merriam-webster.com)
c. My grade is presently very bad but I'm hoping this essay will increase it, parlaying it from a C to an A.