Question 1

The negative symptoms of schizophrenia may be related to

Accepted Answer

Negative symptoms of schizophrenia, such as flat affect and lack of motivation, have been associated with brain damage, particularly in the frontal lobes of the brain.

Question 2

Research conducted by Weinberger and others shows anatomical changes in the brains of schizophrenic patients,relative to controls.Which of the following was the major finding of these studies?

Accepted Answer

Weinberger and others reported that schizophrenic patients show increased size of the lateral ventricles.

Question 3

Which of the following is most likely to be associated with the development of schizophrenia?

Accepted Answer

Research has suggested that prenatal exposure to certain viruses, including the flu, may increase the risk for developing schizophrenia later in life. Being born after a major flu epidemic would increase the likelihood of exposure to the virus during fetal development. The other factors listed have not been consistently shown to be associated with an increased risk for schizophrenia.

Question 4

The mesolimbic pathway projects from the ________ to the ________.

Accepted Answer

The mesolimbic pathway is a dopaminergic pathway that projects from the ventral tegmental area to the nucleus accumbens and amygdala. This pathway is known to be involved in reward processing and is implicated in drug addiction and other reward-seeking behaviors.

Question 5

Which of the following would represent a neurological symptom evident in schizophrenia?

Accepted Answer

An example of a neurological symptom would be having poor control of eye movements and odd facial expressions.

Question 6

Which of the following is a minor physical abnormality found in schizophrenia patients?

Accepted Answer

Partial webbing of the two middle toes is considered a minor physical abnormality that can be found in schizophrenia patients. This is part of a broader category of minor physical anomalies (MPAs) which are more common in individuals with schizophrenia compared to the general population.

Question 7

Which of the following is true of the seasonality effect?

Accepted Answer

The seasonality effect, which refers to the increased incidence of certain conditions like schizophrenia in people born in late winter and early spring, is more pronounced in urban settings compared to rural ones. This is thought to be due to factors like higher population density and increased exposure to infections in urban areas.

Question 8

Children who later in life develop schizophrenia are more likely to show ________ in movies recorded earlier in their childhood.

Accepted Answer

Studies have shown that children who later develop schizophrenia display less social behavior in movies recorded earlier in their childhood. This is considered to be an early indicator or risk factor for the disorder.

Question 9

The positive symptoms of schizophrenia are reversed by drugs that are

Accepted Answer

The positive symptoms of schizophrenia, such as hallucinations and delusions, are believed to be caused by an overactivity of dopamine in certain parts of the brain. Drugs that block dopamine receptors, known as dopamine receptor antagonists, have been found to be effective in reversing these symptoms. Thus, choice E, dopamine receptor antagonists, is the best choice.

Question 10

A key prediction of the viral hypothesis of schizophrenia is that

Accepted Answer

A key prediction of the viral hypothesis of schizophrenia is that children born a few months after the start of a flu outbreak are more likely to develop schizophrenia.

Question 11

Imagine that you have been handed a list of drugs and that beside each drug name is a number that represents the potency of that drug for blocking dopamine receptors (where a low number means a greater potency at blocking).Which drug would be the most potent for the treatment of schizophrenia?

Accepted Answer

A drug that has great efficacy at blocking dopamine receptors ( potency value = 0.1) would be most potent for the treatment of schizophrenia.

Question 12

The positive symptoms of schizophrenia are thought to result from overactivity of ________ neurons of the ________.

Accepted Answer

The positive symptoms of schizophrenia are thought to result from overactivity of dopaminergic neurons of the mesolimbic system.

Question 13

The dopamine hypothesis is supported by the finding that

Accepted Answer

The dopamine hypothesis is supported by the finding that dopamine antagonists relieve the positive symptoms of schizophrenia.

Question 14

Clozapine is referred to as an "atypical" antischizophrenic drug because it

Accepted Answer

Clozapine is referred to as an "atypical" antischizophrenic drug because it reverses both positive and negative symptoms of schizophrenia.

Question 15

Which of the drugs below would be expected to either produce or worsen the positive symptoms of schizophrenia?

Accepted Answer

Cocaine would be expected to either produce or worsen the positive symptoms of schizophrenia.

Question 16

Which of the following is known to increase the risk of schizophrenia?

Accepted Answer

Having a monochorionic twin who is schizophrenic would increase the risk of schizophrenia.

Question 17

Which of the following supports the contention that schizophrenia is associated with brain damage?

Accepted Answer

The fact that the size of the lateral ventricles increases in schizophrenic patients supports the contention that schizophrenia is associated with brain damage.

Question 18

The seasonality effect refers to the observation that

Accepted Answer

Research has shown that people born during the winter months have a higher likelihood of developing schizophrenia, which is referred to as the seasonality effect.

Question 19

John has been diagnosed with schizophrenia and has shown improvement in positive symptoms while taking chlorpromazine (CPZ).Which of the actions below,if taken by John,would be expected to greatly worsen his positive schizophrenia symptoms?

Accepted Answer

A schizophrenic who stops taking their medication (CPZ) and who then takes cocaine would be expected to relapse.

Question 20

Which of the following is an explanation offered by Carlson for the seasonality effect in schizophrenia?

Accepted Answer

Carlson suggests that a fetus born in the late winter is more likely to have been exposed to a viral infection during the second trimester, which is a risk factor for developing schizophrenia later in life. This explanation is based on the hypothesis that maternal infections can affect fetal brain development.

Quiz 15: Schizophrenia, Affective Disorders, and Anxiety Disorders