Advanced Search

The American Journal of Psychiatry, VOL. 161, No. 2

Letter to the Editor | February 01, 2004

On Biology, Phenomenology, and Pharmacology in Schizophrenia

DANIEL L. CRANE, M.D.

Am J Psychiatry 2004;161:376-376. 10.1176/appi.ajp.161.2.376

Article

References

text A A A

To the Editor: In a recent issue of the Journal, Shitij Kapur, M.D., Ph.D., F.R.C.P.C., described the linkage between biology, phenomenology, and pharmacology in schizophrenia (1). Two articles in the British literature from 1961 (2) and 1966 (3) seem to dovetail nicely with Dr. Kapur’s elegantly crafted framework.

The British authors argued against Federn’s 1953 theoretical model of psychosis (4) as an impairment of ego functions and suggested that the breakdown in interpersonal difficulties was a reaction to a primary cognitive disturbance in the field of attention and perception and that all schizophrenia symptom profiles could be interpreted as reactions to this basic disorder. Their methods consisted of meticulously recording clinical interviews with schizophrenia patients. They were not aware of the central role of dopamine in reward and reinforcement. Thus, they were not able to describe the reported abnormalities of perception in terms of aberrant salience rather than as phenomenological entities alone.

Dr. Kapur’s convincing hypothesis presents strong experimental, pharmacological, and neurobiological data to help one understand the mass of schizophrenia phenomenology previously described and ascribed to varying, now presumably incorrect, hypotheses.

References

Kapur S: Psychosis as a state of aberrant salience: a framework linking biology, phenomenology, and pharmacology in schizophrenia. Am J Psychiatry 2003; 160:13–23[PubMed][CrossRef]

McGhie A, Chapman J: Disorders of attention and perception in early schizophrenia. Br J Med Psychol 1961; 34:103–116[PubMed][CrossRef]

Chapman J: The early symptoms of schizophrenia. Br J Psychiatry 1966; 112:225–251[PubMed][CrossRef]

Federn P: Ego Psychology and the Psychosis. London, Imago, 1953

Kapur S: Psychosis as a state of aberrant salience: a framework linking biology, phenomenology, and pharmacology in schizophrenia. Am J Psychiatry 2003; 160:13–23[PubMed][CrossRef]

McGhie A, Chapman J: Disorders of attention and perception in early schizophrenia. Br J Med Psychol 1961; 34:103–116[PubMed][CrossRef]

Chapman J: The early symptoms of schizophrenia. Br J Psychiatry 1966; 112:225–251[PubMed][CrossRef]

Federn P: Ego Psychology and the Psychosis. London, Imago, 1953

CME Activity

There is currently no quiz available for this resource. Please click here to go to the CME page to find another.

Submit a Comments

Please read the other comments before you post yours. Contributors must reveal any conflict of interest.
Comments are moderated and will appear on the site at the discertion of JBJS editorial staff.

* = Required Field

Comment Author(s)*(if multiple authors, separate names by comma)

Example: John Doe

Affiliation & Institution*

Comment Title*

Comment*

Cancel

Print
E-mail

Recipient(s) will receive an email with a link (good for 72 hours) to 'On Biology, Phenomenology, and Pharmacology in Schizophrenia' and do not need to have American Journal of Psychiatry account to access the content.
Your Name:*
Example: John Doe

Email Address:* CC Me:
Enter your valid email address. Example: jdoe@example.com

Recipient's Email Address:*
Separate multiple email address with semi-colons (up to 5).

Subject:* 's American Journal of Psychiatry: 'On Biology, Phenomenology, and Pharmacology in Schizophrenia'
Subject for your email.

Message:
(Optional, message will truncate at 1000 characters)

Processing your request... Please Wait...

Copyright © in the material you requested is held by The American Psychiatric Association (unless otherwise noted). This email ability is provided as a courtesy, and by using it you agree that you are requesting the material solely for personal, non-commercial use, and that it is subject to The American Psychiatric Association's Terms of Use. The information provided in order to email this topic will not be used to send unsolicited email, nor will it be furnished to third parties. Please refer to The American Psychiatric Association's Privacy Policy for further information.

Copyright © American Psychiatric Association. All rights reserved.
Share
Get Citation

DANIEL L. CRANE; On Biology, Phenomenology, and Pharmacology in Schizophrenia. American Journal of Psychiatry. 2004 Feb;161(2):376-376.

Download citation file:

RIS (Zotero)

EndNote

BibTex

Medlars

ProCite

RefWorks

Reference Manager

Copyright © American Psychiatric Association. All rights reserved.
Reprints