Contents

Disclaimer

Oxford University Press makes no representation, express or implied, that the drug dosages in this book are correct. Readers must therefore always check the product information and clinical procedures with the most up to date published product information and data sheets provided by the manufacturers and the most recent codes of conduct and safety regulations. The authors and the publishers do not accept responsibility or legal liability for any errors in the text or for the misuse or misapplication of material in this work. Except where otherwise stated, drug dosages and recommendations are for the non-pregnant adult who is not breastfeeding.

Show Summary Details
Page of

Schizophrenia: a conceptual history 

Schizophrenia: a conceptual history
Chapter:
Schizophrenia: a conceptual history
Author(s):

Nancy C. Andreasen

DOI:
10.1093/med/9780199696758.003.0071
Page of

PRINTED FROM OXFORD MEDICINE ONLINE (www.oxfordmedicine.com). © Oxford University Press, 2021. All Rights Reserved. Under the terms of the licence agreement, an individual user may print out a PDF of a single chapter of a title in Oxford Medicine Online for personal use (for details see Privacy Policy and Legal Notice).

date: 26 July 2021

We know that psychotic disorders have been present and publicly recognized at least since classical times because of their portrayals in literature: the madness of Medea, the frenzied behaviour in The Bacchae, or the paranoia of Othello. Perhaps the most ‘valid’ portrayal from a modern clinical perspective is the feigned madness of ‘Poor Tom’ in King Lear. However, the definition and delineation of schizophrenia as a discrete disorder is a relatively recent phenomenon. This chapter covers the founding fathers of the concept: Kraepelin and Bleuler, Schneiderian symptoms, psychosis, and the dominance of diagnostic criteria, and the concept of positive and negative symptoms, finishing with a look present and future developments.

Access to the complete content on Oxford Medicine Online requires a subscription or purchase. Public users are able to search the site and view the abstracts for each book and chapter without a subscription.

Please subscribe or login to access full text content.

If you have purchased a print title that contains an access token, please see the token for information about how to register your code.

For questions on access or troubleshooting, please check our FAQs, and if you can't find the answer there, please contact us.