Analysis of Qualitative Articles on Schizophrenia

Running head: REPORT
Analysis of qualitative articles
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1REPORT
Executive summary
Qualitative research is exploratory in nature and is used for gaining a deeper understanding of
the underlying factors, reasons, motivations and opinions. Although there are a range of data
collection techniques in qualitative research, the three articles used interviews and semi-
structured questionnaires for collecting responses from the participants. Thus, the three
qualitative articles that were analysed in the report provided an insight into the problems
associated with schizophrenia, a mental disorder and also helped in the formulation of ideas
and hypothesis for future quantitative research.

2REPORT
Table of Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................................3
Analysis......................................................................................................................................3
Article 1..................................................................................................................................3
Article 2..................................................................................................................................5
Article 3..................................................................................................................................6
Conclusion..................................................................................................................................8
References..................................................................................................................................9

3REPORT
Introduction
Schizophrenia refers to a mental disorder that is usually manifested in early adulthood
or late adolescence and is characterised by hallucinations, delusions, and other cognitive
problems (Meehl, 2017). This mental disorder is commonly exhibited in the form of an
abnormal social behaviour and loss of contact with the reality. The signs and symptoms are
directly responsible for a reduction in social engagement, lack of emotional expressions, and
reduced motivation. Individuals suffering from this mental illness have also been found to
report other psychological problems such as, depression, substance abuse and anxiety (Hallak
et al., 2013). Some of the most common causes of the disorder are genetic and environmental.
The symptoms faced by schizophrenia affected people are categorised into four groups
namely, positive, negative, cognitive or emotional problems (Modinos et al., 2013). Although
treatment helps in relieving majority of the symptoms that are associated with the condition,
most of the patients have to take efforts to cope with their distress. Common interventions
that are applied for the disorder include psychological counselling, medication, and self-help
resources. The report will critically analyse three qualitative research studies on
schizophrenia and assess their rigour, strength and weaknesses.
Analysis
Article 1
Lloyd, J., Lloyd, H., Fitzpatrick, R., & Peters, M. (2017). Treatment outcomes in
schizophrenia: qualitative study of the views of family carers. BMC psychiatry, 17(1),
266. DOI 10.1186/s12888-017-1418-8
The aim of the research was to gain an understanding of the treatment outcomes,
perceived as important by informal carers who deliver care services to people affected with
schizophrenia. They based their study on the finding that an improvement of the treatment