Negative Symptoms and Problem Alcohol Drinking in People with Schizophrenia
This article is devoted to those who do not reach the criteria of the dependent behavior of alcohol consumption for manifestation of negative symptoms in persons with schizophrenia. The following psychometric assessment tools were used: the ASSIST screening scale for detecting alcohol consumption and the PANSS scale for formalized assessment of the severity of negative symptoms. The study involved 123 patients undergoing inpatient treatment at the Gomel Regional Clinical Psychiatric Hospital with diagnoses of schizophrenia and acute polymorphic psychotic disorders of the schizophrenic spectrum. The following data were obtained: different levels of alcohol consumption (ASSIST scale) are in connection with the level of social maladjustment, negative symptoms. The group with “low risk” had less pronounced negative symptoms due to the following indicators:“flattening of affect”,“emotional detachment”,“insufficient report”,“stereotyped thinking”. The group with problematic alcohol consumption in comparison with the control group did not have statistically significant differences.