Download Author: Arieti, Silvano, M.D.

70 eBooks available.

The Cognitive Transformation

In many cases of schizophrenia the disorder does not manifest itself, at least in its initial stages, with obvious symptoms. Some cognitive alterations may appear to be within the normal range or not distinguishable from those occurring in neuroses and character disorders. Usual psychological tests may also fail to show evidence of cognitive impairment. However, people who knew the patient well can recognize the difference in him. His attitude toward life has changed.

Second Period: Late Childhood

Although primary process mechanisms continue to function in these children for a period of time longer than in normal circumstances, the primary process is eventually overcome and to a very large extent is replaced by secondary process mechanisms.

Third Period: Adolescence and Early Adulthood

Because the early experiences have made the future patient awkward socially, clumsy in his activities, and somewhat inadequate in coping with life in general, his defects become more evident in adolescence and later, when he has to deal with a greater range of situations.

Patients Studied through Family Members

The schizophrenic patient to be reported in detail in this chapter was never seen by the author, nor discussed in supervision with other colleagues. This chapter illustrates how much, in some instances, we can learn about the psychodynamics of schizophrenia from the special perspective of a close member of the family.

Schizophrenia: Psychodynamic Mechanisms and Psychostructural Forms

(107 pp.)

Psychodynamics of Schizophrenia

The Family of the Schizophrenic

First Period: Early Childhood

Second Period: Late Childhood

Third Period: Adolescence, Youth, Adulthood

Fourth Period: The Psychosis

The Process of Active Concretization

Paleologic Thought

Desymbolization and Desocialization

Causality and Action: Motor Dysfunctions

Progressive Teleologic Regression

Individual Psychotherapy of Schizophrenia

My own marked preference in the average case of schizophrenia is individual psychotherapy, although with numerous patients I use a mixed psychotherapy and drug therapy. My “bias” is based on the belief that physical therapies, as far as we know or can infer, produce only a symptomatic improvement, whereas psychotherapy tends to (1) remove the basic conflicts which are important and necessary causative elements of the disorder; (2) correct the psychopathologic patterns; (3) change the self-image of the patient and therefore make him less vulnerable; and (4) permit the regenerative psychological powers of the organism to regain the lost ground. (71 pp.)

American Handbook of Psychiatry: Volume 1

The Foundations of Psychiatry. Offers an overview of the History of Psychiatry, Basic Notions, Human Development, Schools of Psychiatry, and Psychiatric Contributions from related fields. Download the entire volume or choose any of the individual chapters below. (3272 pp.)

The Basic Questions

What is schizophrenia? How can it be recognized, interpreted, and treated?