Demographic, historical, psychometric, and clinical data were obtained from the psychiatric files of all patients manifesting schizophrenic symptomatology who were hospitalized in an adolescent psychiatric facility during a five year period (N= 71). Factor analysis of the usable data resulted in three interpretable factors, which included: (1) aggressive behavior; (2) disturbed family functioning; and, (3) thought disorder. Age of first hospitalization correlated positively with factor three.
The results provide support for concerns expressed by a number of scientists and clinicians that schizophrenia may not be a discrete, unitary disorder; and that uncritical downward extension of adult diagnoses to adolescents and prepubescent children may be questionable. The results further suggest that current DSM-III and DSMIII- R subtypes of schizophrenia (which are clinically derived and symptom based), are not validated by empirically derived subtypes that include objective indices of behavior along with clinical symptoms. The correlation of "age of first hospitalization" with one of the three factors suggests that developmental level at the onset of illness may represent an important mediating variable in the severity and prognosis of certain subtypes of schizophrenia.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UTAHS/oai:digitalcommons.usu.edu:etd-7039 |
| Date | 01 May 1989 |
| Creators | Adams, Paul R. |
| Publisher | DigitalCommons@USU |
| Source Sets | Utah State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | All Graduate Theses and Dissertations |
| Rights | Copyright for this work is held by the author. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owner. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user. For more information contact digitalcommons@usu.edu. |
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