# Stop misusing "schizophrenic", please **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [May 22, 2002, 9:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-misusing-schizophrenic-please/110271 "2002-05-22T09:41:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Jervoise](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d2c977/32.png) [@Jervoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jervoise)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2002, 9:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-misusing-schizophrenic-please/110271/1 "2002-05-22T09:41:27Z")
_**Roses are red Violets are blue I am schizophrenic And so am I**_ It was funny in primary school, but it’s not anymore. Now that we’re all big people it’s time to use grown-up words. It’s time to use the CORRECT words. It’s time to stop perpetuating the myth that schizophrenia involves a split or dual personaliity. Here’s an astonishing revelation from one of my law lecturers at uni (published in our Careers Handbook): “So today I lead a schizoid existence: part solicitor and part academic”. And part fucking idiot! Schizophrenia is NOT a general term to describe a duality. Working two jobs does NOT mean you lead a “schizoid existence”. **Schizophrenia is a diagnosable mental illness involving a loss of contact with reality**. Or, if you prefer, **[schizophrenia](http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000928.htm) " is a disease that makes it difficult for a person to tell the difference between real and unreal experiences, to think logically, to have normal emotional responses to others, and to behave normally in social situtations."** So people, please stop using “schizo” as a slang term to describe a duality (of personality, of style, or whatever). It’s inaccurate. And it’s damn offensive. Here’s some recent Board examples of inaccurate and offensive misuse of the term “schizo”:\*\* > [@](#): > > realize wile reading your list why I am so infernally schizo, what-with living with the two cultures in my head and what-not. (that would be four when I count more precisely, but still) > [@](#): > > Those of us who are familiar with the legislative, judicial and administrative history of the 2nd and various gun control laws are getting very PO’d at the schizo nature of gun control and various proposed gun control laws. We feel as if we’re being hit from every angle just about all of the time. > [@](#): > > Stoopid Iggles… they hose me when they win, then I pick them to win and they hose me by losing. What a schizo team you got there my friend. Blecch! I’d say more but this is not the Pit.\*\* I don’t mean to pick on specific posters. This is a common misconception. Misuse of the term “schizo” is widespread in society, not just on these boards. However, since this place is apparently about fighting ignorance, how about we make a special effort to use words properly? That is all. ---
**Author:** ![Ice\_Wolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/dfb087/32.png) [@Ice\_Wolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ice_Wolf)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2002, 11:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-misusing-schizophrenic-please/110271/2 "2002-05-22T11:07:07Z")
As one who has made this mistake in the past, and knows the difference now: “Hear, hear, **Narrad**!” ---
**Author:** ![Coldfire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a587f6/32.png) [@Coldfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coldfire)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2002, 11:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-misusing-schizophrenic-please/110271/3 "2002-05-22T11:20:38Z")
I fully agree with the OP. ---
**Author:** ![Coldfire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a587f6/32.png) [@Coldfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coldfire)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2002, 11:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-misusing-schizophrenic-please/110271/4 "2002-05-22T11:20:55Z")
No, I don’t! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![sirjamesp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@sirjamesp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sirjamesp)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2002, 11:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-misusing-schizophrenic-please/110271/5 "2002-05-22T11:27:55Z")
“Two Andy Gorams, there’s only two Andy Gorams…” - Kilmarnock fans’ chant to the Rangers 'keeper (diagnosed with mild schizophrenia) ---
**Author:** ![Elenfair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/cc9497/32.png) [@Elenfair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elenfair)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2002, 11:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-misusing-schizophrenic-please/110271/6 "2002-05-22T11:46:52Z")
Right on! Schizophrenia is not the same thing as multiple personality disorder (MPD which, according to some, may be a factitious disorder.) Drives me bananas too! _sigh_ Elly ---
**Author:** ![Neidhart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Neidhart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neidhart)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2002, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-misusing-schizophrenic-please/110271/7 "2002-05-22T12:52:50Z")
And [Schizoid Personality Disorder](http://www2.health-center.com/mentalhealth/personality/schizoid.htm) is an entirely different thing from schizophrenia. The similar names are confusing, but they were grandfathered in long before it was known that these conditions are not related. ---
**Author:** ![S\_Puppy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eada6e/32.png) [@S\_Puppy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/S_Puppy)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2002, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-misusing-schizophrenic-please/110271/8 "2002-05-22T13:22:24Z")
My understanding was that schizoid personality, split personality, and dual (or multiple) personality were three distinctly different conditions. ---
**Author:** ![Caricci](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/85f322/32.png) [@Caricci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Caricci)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2002, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-misusing-schizophrenic-please/110271/9 "2002-05-22T13:29:35Z")
I hate this too and I hate even more when people say that they have OCD when what they really mean is they like to keep their home clean. They should know the torment of OCD for one day and maybe they will shut up. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2002, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-misusing-schizophrenic-please/110271/10 "2002-05-22T15:57:01Z")
This is something that really, really, really pisses me off. My father was schizophrenic, as are a couple other relatives and friends. To hear people use “schizophrenic” when what they mean is “split personality” completely creeps me out. ---
**Author:** ![stofsky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dfb087/32.png) [@stofsky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stofsky)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2002, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-misusing-schizophrenic-please/110271/11 "2002-05-22T16:05:48Z")
Latka Vic Ferrari Alex Reiger You be the judge. I deserve to live life in the fast lane. ---
**Author:** ![pldennison](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9fc29f/32.png) [@pldennison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pldennison)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2002, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-misusing-schizophrenic-please/110271/12 "2002-05-22T16:16:07Z")
And as long as we’re correcting the misuse of this word, can we have a moratorium on the phrase, “Geez, forget to take your Prozac?” and its derivations. And the corollary implication that Prozac and other SSRIs are “happy pills?” Because I can assure everyone that they aren’t. **Elenfair** : > [@](#): > > Drives me bananas too! I think the preferred psychiatric term is “apeshit.” 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Mockingbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c68b51/32.png) [@Mockingbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mockingbird)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2002, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-misusing-schizophrenic-please/110271/13 "2002-05-22T16:46:11Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Elenfair \* > \*\*Right on! > > Schizophrenia is not the same thing as multiple personality disorder (MPD which, according to some, may be a factitious disorder.) Drives me bananas too! > > _sigh_ > > Elly \*\* By the DSM 4, MPD is now called DID(Disassociative Identity Disorder). ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2002, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-misusing-schizophrenic-please/110271/14 "2002-05-22T17:41:23Z")
Maybe I’m wrong, but my understanding is that the psychiatric definition of ‘schizophrenia’ has changed a great deal over time, as understanding has advanced, and that the term would not mean the same to a mental health professional today as it would have fifty years ago. As I understand it, it’s only been fairly recently that the psychiatrists have had a good idea of what they meant by the term. Meanwhile, _popular_ use of the term and its variations has stayed quite consistent over that time, and perhaps for a good deal longer. Maybe the mental health professionals ought to just coin a new word, and let the rest of us use ‘schizophrenia’ and all its variations as we damned well please. This isn’t France, where there’s an Academy that dictates proper word usage; in America - and I presume in other English-speaking countries as well - we, the people, are the ultimate arbiters of correct usage. _Hopefully_, that will always be the case. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![LilShieste](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9f8e36/32.png) [@LilShieste](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LilShieste)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2002, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-misusing-schizophrenic-please/110271/15 "2002-05-22T18:07:51Z")
I agree with the OP, but I thought I would clarify something: Schizophrenia, translated by its roots “schizo” and “phrenia”, literally means “split mind”. Granted _now_ we know that Multiple Personalities (or DID, as **Hastur** accurately pointed out) is not the same disorder as Schizophrenia… although there are some forms of schizophrenia which some Psychologists may accidentally misdiagnose as DID, becasue of the auditory hallucinations (voices etc.). LilShieste ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2002, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-misusing-schizophrenic-please/110271/16 "2002-05-22T18:20:52Z")
**elenfair** : > [@](#): > > Schizophrenia is not the same thing as multiple personality disorder (MPD which, according to some, may be a factitious disorder.) According to some, schizophrenia may also be a factitious disorder. **RTFirefly** > [@](#): > > Maybe I’m wrong, but my understanding is that the psychiatric definition of ‘schizophrenia’ has changed a great deal over time, as understanding has advanced, and that the term would not mean the same to a mental health professional today as it would have fifty years ago. As I understand it, it’s only been fairly recently that the psychiatrists have had a good idea of what they meant by the term. They would have you believe that now. Of course, they would have tried to have you believe that back then, too. Go back in time and ask psychiatrists at any point since Emil Kraepelin and they’ll all tell you that at some awful earlier date, we didn’t know diddly about mental illness, and that a lot of psychiatric treatment was unmitigated quackery, but now (regardless of when “now” is) we’ve pretty much got it nailed down and treatment is humane and effective. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2002, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-misusing-schizophrenic-please/110271/17 "2002-05-22T18:32:59Z")
**RTFirefly** , schizophrenia was never defined to include “split personality.” From [here](http://www.uthscsa.edu/mission/spring96/schizd.htm): > [@](#): > > The term schizophrenia was coined by Swiss psychiatrist Eugen Bleuler. The word refers to a split between the subjective feeling, or affect, and the thought being experienced, not a “split personality” in the sense of the story “Sybil” or the personality of Eve in the motion picture “Three Faces of Eve” or other rare cases of multiple personality. The two disorders are different, although schizophrenia is frequently misunderstood as “split personality” by laymen. The split in schizophrenia refers to the discrepancy between thinking and feeling. The only connection is that “schizo” means “split.” The misuse of the term is just ignorant, not the result of a change in classification. The definition of schizophrenia has not changed so much over time but rather has become narrower. You can can continue to use schizophrenia wrongly if you wish. Just be aware that it makes you look ignorant as well as pissing off people who may actually know someone with the condition. ---
**Author:** ![LilShieste](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9f8e36/32.png) [@LilShieste](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LilShieste)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2002, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-misusing-schizophrenic-please/110271/18 "2002-05-22T18:49:52Z")
> [@](#): > > According to some, schizophrenia may also be a factitious disorder. I agree that not _all_ cases of Schizophrenia (or any mental disorder, for that matter) are legit… but there are some forms of schizophrenia which even the best actors in the world could not duplicate. **Ex** : Catatonic Schizophrenia LilShieste ---
**Author:** ![mobo85](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mobo85](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mobo85)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2002, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-misusing-schizophrenic-please/110271/19 "2002-05-22T19:20:15Z")
Misuse “schizophrenic?” We’d never think of it. (Sorry…you probably saw that one coming, anyway…) ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2002, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-misusing-schizophrenic-please/110271/20 "2002-05-22T20:28:42Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Colibri \* > You can can continue to use schizophrenia wrongly if you wish. Just be aware that it makes you look ignorant as well as pissing off people who may actually know someone with the condition. I’m a mathematician. We have a fair number of terms that people use ‘wrongly’ in colloquial speech. ‘Uncountable’, ‘discrete’, and stuff like that. You know what? It’s their right. If they aren’t speaking to the American Mathematical Society, then they’re allowed to use those words in a common-English fashion, as opposed to a professional-mathematician fashion. We don’t _own_ the words in the larger world; we can only require ‘correct’ usage of them in our professional journals. I submit the same standard holds for all learned disciplines, including psychiatry. A bumper sticker isn’t a professional journal. If that pisses people off, then that’s their problem, AFAIAC. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stop-misusing-schizophrenic-please/110271.md?page=2)