Child abuse and psychosis: A literature review and implications for professional practice

This review summarizes the research demonstrating the relationships of childhood abuse to psychosis and schizophrenia and raises the possibility that the relationships may be causal. Six ways in which the relationship between child abuse and psychosis fan be minimized are identified: (a) excluding psychotic individuals from studies; (b) relying on records of childhood abuse rather than asking patients: (c) ignoring relevant studies; (d) reinterpreting psychotic symptoms as nonpsychotic where abuse is identified, thereby avoiding diagnoses such as schizophrenia; (e) positing spurious intervening variables; and (f) adhering rigidly to a biomedical model. Implications for professional practice, at the policy and clinical levels, are presented.