Read the passage and answer the following questions:
Sarita is a 45 years old housewife. Her husband observed that Sarita's behaviour has changed in the past few months, as she seems to be constantly worried, is suspicious of others and very cautious of going out or even eating the food made by their maid. When asked, Sarita claimed that she hears someone is plotting against her and she may be attacked by others around her including her family members. She also complains of hearing voices of her family members and even strangers who speak ill of her. Sarita firmly believes that 'everyone should be nice to her as she is nice to everyone'. These experiences trouble her mentally, resulting into Alogia, social withdrawal, blunt affect and avolition.
In the passage above, Sarita seems to be diagnosed with _____.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → Schizophrenia
Option (1) Dissociative Identity Disorder — Incorrect. Often called multiple personality, it is a disorder in which the person assumes alternate personalities that may or may not be aware of each other. Sarita keeps one identity throughout.
Option (2) Major Depressive disorder — Incorrect. Major depressive disorder is a period of depressed mood and/or loss of interest or pleasure in most activities, with symptoms such as sleep problems, tiredness and thoughts of death. Sarita’s chief problems are false beliefs and voices, which depression does not explain.
Option (3) Conversion disorder — Incorrect. In conversion, the person suffers a loss or impairment of a motor or sensory function, such as paralysis or blindness, that has no physical cause. Sarita has no such bodily symptom.
Option (4) Schizophrenia — Correct. Schizophrenia is a group of psychotic disorders marked by disturbed thought processes, strange perceptions and unusual emotional states. Sarita shows symptoms of every kind:
positive symptoms: a delusion of persecution (others are plotting to attack her) and auditory hallucinations (voices speaking ill of her);
negative symptoms: alogia, blunt affect, avolition and social withdrawal.
NCERT (2025-26): “Schizophrenia Spectrum and Other Psychotic Disorders … Schizophrenia is the descriptive term for a group of psychotic disorders in which personal, social and occupational functioning deteriorate as a result of disturbed thought processes, strange perceptions, unusual emotional states, and motor abnormalities.…” “Symptoms of Schizophrenia … People with schizophrenia may have hallucinations, i.e. perceptions that occur in the absence of external stimuli. Auditory hallucinations are most common in schizophrenia.…” “…Negative symptoms are ‘pathological deficits’ and include poverty of speech, blunted and flat affect, loss of volition, and social withdrawal.…” “Dissociative Disorders … Dissociative identity disorder, often referred to as multiple personality, is the most dramatic of the dissociative disorders. It is often associated with traumatic experiences in childhood. In this disorder, the person assumes alternate personalities that may or may not be aware of each other.…” “Depressive Disorders … Major depressive disorder is defined as a period of depressed mood and/or loss of interest or pleasure in most activities, together with other symptoms which may include change in body weight, constant sleep problems, tiredness, inability to think clearly, agitation, greatly slowed behaviour, and thoughts of death and suicide.…” |