Schizophrenia is a psychological disorder that affects approximately 2.2 million people (Lumpur, 2005). As a child, this author did not understand the term “schizophrenic”. All that was known was that a person with the disease did not appear ill, but inside they were mentally disturbed. The author's previous thoughts on schizophrenia were unclear, this report will describe schizophrenia and its causative factors as well as descriptions of how schizophrenia is diagnosed and treated. Schizophrenia is a mixture of signs and symptoms that can be both positive and negative (American Psychiatric Association, 2000). Signs and symptoms of the disorder may indicate social or occupational dysfunction (American Psychiatric Association, 2000). A person previously diagnosed with a pervasive developmental disorder may be diagnosed with schizophrenia only if signs of delusions or hallucinations are present (American Psychiatric Association, 2000). Symptoms of schizophrenia are characterized by the absence of a range of "cognitive and emotional dysfunctions, inferential thinking, language and communication, behavioral monitoring, fluency and productivity of thought and speech, hedonic capacity, willpower and motivation, and attention” (American Psychiatric Association, 2000). ).While commonly used terminology classifies schizophrenia as a mixture of symptoms including "hallucinations, delusions, paranoia, withdrawal, flattened emotional responses, and memory disturbances" (Ledgerwood, Ewald, & Cochran, 2003). . Schizophrenia appears in men in their late teens, while in women it is in their mid-20s (Ledgerwood et al., 2003). Schizophrenia was once known as "brain damage", but is now commonly listed in the middle of the article......ectives in Biology and Medicine, 46(3), 317-48. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/230489658?accountid=34899Lumpur, K. (2005). What is schizophrenia? Retrieved from Sunday Mail: Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/325080490?accountid=34899Mortensen, PB, Pedersen, MG and Pedersen, CB (2010). Psychiatric family history and risk of schizophrenia in Denmark: which mental disorders are relevant? Psychological Medicine, 40(2), 201-10. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0033291709990419Palmer, BW, Dawes, SE, & Heaton, RK (2009). What do we know about the neuropsychological aspects of schizophrenia? Journal of Neuropsychology, 19(3), 365-84. do I:http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11065-009-9109-yWhat is schizophrenia? (2013). Retrieved from National Institute of Mental Health: http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/schizophrenia/index.shtml