AO1

• Diathess - stress model explains mental disorders as the result of an interaction between biological (the diathesis) and the environment (the stress) influences
• The interactionist approach to schizophrenia is the idea that the interaction of multiple factors cause schizophrenia.
• In schizophrenia the primary diathesis is typically a genetic vulnerability that results in a dopamine imbalance
• One or more diatheses need to be combined with a trigger to result is schizophrenia. Stressors that act as triggers for schizophrenia include family dysfunction, drug abuse, or a major negative life event such as death of a loved on or divorce
• Combinations of CBT and drug therapies are seen as a particularly effective interactionist treatment for schizophrenia as they address both the diathesis and the trigger for the condition