Research is profoundly interesting when it comes to the development of schizophrenia, as outlined and argued by Goldenberg and Goldenberg. The book explains what has been very obvious in the study of schizophrenia; that the family plays a vital role in the issue on the etiology of the disorder.
For instance a depressed mother’s limitations to provide excellent care is hampered by depression or her own difficulties may be encountering hardships in rearing up children in that they (a family or families overburdened with stressful activities) are likely to have difficulty in providing structure and discipline to their children, which are exactly the things necessary and essential to develop children as well-adjusted and smart members of society.
For example, inside the household, how will the mother do the routines in the morning concerning food preparation, attending to basic hygiene and health of children or even, when they become rowdy and quarrelsome with one another, how will she react to these scenarios? The text implies with this kind of reasoning: the mother does not have the energy and the ability to be involved to do even very simple routinary disciplinary actions.
Literature is rich in providing the reader with evidences that the family system is critically important, especially when its members such as the parents, is unrelentless in bombarding its children with verbal and emotional abuse is more likely to produce children who are apt to develop Schizophrenia. In addition, developmental issue, such as whether infants were maltreated or when maltreatment had occurred in the later childhood phase matter a lot to the consequent effects of disorder.
This is food for thought especially to mothers who think they can make it up in the latter years when they feel okay. What is more startling is that another factor, the “biological factors” emphasized the impact of trauma (not just to mention the physical one) on the changes that a child undergoes in the neurobiological level. Absorbing the detailed description of the studies made mention by the author on what they call as “pruning of specific neurologic pathways” and that which specifically influence the affect or emotional bearing of the child.
No wonder some children never can overcome these effects especially when they reach adulthood when stresses compound and those ‘pathways” may no longer be able to bear up the crisis that had arrived into their lives. Only proper insights to cases like these a practitioner effectively give or apply interventions. A comprehensive and wide knowledge on developmental issues among children, having the proper theoretical perspectives, a balanced ideation on many of these concepts, as well as a mature appreciation of family systems is a must in this kind of work.
Family systems therapy then is a necessary approach that every family member must be counseled and given the opportunity knowing that surely there are issues that are affecting him/her in more ways than one with their family set-up.
Reference Goldenberg, I. , & Goldenberg, H. (2008). Family therapy: An overview (7th ed. ). Pacific Grove, CA: Brookes/Cole. ISBN: 0495097594.