schizophrenia

Table of Contents

References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics

For Students

schizophrenia summary

Read Next

Illustration showing electrical activity of the human brain

5 Common Misconceptions About Schizophrenia

Two domestic cats lying down with each other. Feline mammal snuggle whiskers

Do Cats Cause Schizophrenia?

Discover

African Americans demonstrating for voting rights in front of the White House as police and others watch, March 12, 1965. One sign reads, "We demand the right to vote everywhere." Voting Rights Act, civil rights.

Timeline of the American Civil Rights Movement

Estimated battle casualties, Normandy invasion, World War II. WWII, D-Day

Estimated Battle Casualties During the Normandy Invasion and Campaign to Liberate Paris (June–August 1944)

Demystified - Do Lemmings Really Commit Mass Suicide? illustration

Do Lemmings Really Commit Mass Suicide?

Nelson Mandela, undated photo.

15 Nelson Mandela Quotes

Statue of Nostradamus

Nostradamus and His Prophecies

Scolex (head) of the tapeworm Taenia solium. The hooks of the scolex enable the tapeworm to attach to the intestinal wall.

Uninvited Guests: The 7 Worst Parasitic Worms

airplane in flight (plane, aircraft, flying)

7 Puzzling Plane Disappearances

schizophrenia: Facts & Related Content

Written and fact-checked by The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last Updated: Jun 15, 2025

News •

Weight loss drug semaglutide proven safe and effective for people with schizophrenia • June 11, 2025, 12:24 AM ET (News-Medical)

Taking antipsychotic medications lowers crash risk for drivers with schizophrenia • June 9, 2025, 2:46 AM ET (News-Medical)

Genetic analysis reveals shared biological mechanisms in depression, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia • June 2, 2025, 5:46 AM ET (Medical Xpress)

Mental health patient treated with clozapine via virtual ward • May 25, 2025, 7:39 PM ET (BBC)

Study shows elevated risk of psychopathology in children of people with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder • May 21, 2025, 11:16 PM ET (News-Medical)

Facts

Also Known As	dementia praecox

Topics

undifferentiated schizophrenia childhood schizophrenia hebephrenic schizophrenia paranoid schizophrenia catatonic schizophrenia dysphrenia mental disorder memory disorder gender dysphoria anxiety disorder imposter syndrome post-traumatic stress disorder dissociative disorder perseveration agnosia substance use disorder addiction

Dig Deeper: More Articles That Discuss This Topic

mental disorder: Schizophrenia

Key People

Harry Stack Sullivan

American psychiatrist

Patrick McGorry

Irish-born Australian psychiatrist

Emil Kraepelin

German psychiatrist

Eugen Bleuler

Eugen Bleuler

Swiss psychiatrist

Luce Irigaray

French linguist, psychoanalyst, and philosopher

R.D. Laing

British psychiatrist

Manfred J. Sakel

Austrian neurophysiologist and psychiatrist

Benedict Augustin Morel

French psychologist

Quiz

44 Questions from Britannica’s Most Popular Health and Medicine Quizzes

List

Illustration showing electrical activity of the human brain

5 Common Misconceptions About Schizophrenia

Demystified

Two domestic cats lying down with each other. Feline mammal snuggle whiskers

Do Cats Cause Schizophrenia?