Schizothymia: Definition, Causes, Symptoms, Treatment and Controversy

Throughout the history of psychology, attempts have been made to decipher people’s minds and thoughts through all kinds of methods. Certain currents of psychological research created a series of psychiatric classifications or typologies taking as reference the physical characteristics or attributes shared by a certain number of people.

One of these typologies is the not very well-known schizothymia Throughout this article we will talk about what the meaning of this term is, where its origin is and the weak points it has when defining a person’s temperament.

What is schizothymia?

Schizothymia or schizothymic personality is a term, currently out of use, that was used to refer to people with a withdrawn and distant nature, which do not present any type of psychotic pathology. These people usually live in solitude and with their attention fully focused on their inner world. Likewise, they are people with a tendency or predisposition to manifest symptoms related to autism.

On an intellectual level, the schizothymic personality is related to originality, idealism and the tendency towards abstract analysis and sometimes obsessive organization.

This type of personality was described by E. Kretschmer in his classification of psychiatric typologies according to physical appearance and temperament. And it would constitute a non-pathological version of schizophrenia in which only negative symptoms are present.

This tendency towards introversion and isolation, typical of schizothymia, differs from cyclothymia in that in the latter the person experiences a series of fluctuations that take them from this state of introversion or depression to a state of extreme enthusiasm or euphoria.

Schizothymia is characterized by the depth and intensity with which the person experiences their most intimate experiences, which are followed by extensive periods of subjective reflection and internalization.

In the same way that the person lacks any type of interest in the external reality that encompasses them, they also manifest great deficits in social skills which is a problem when starting or maintaining any type of interpersonal relationship.

Another peculiarity of schizotymic people is that they express their anger or aggressiveness in a very cold and distant way. As a general rule, the schizothymic will tend to accumulate his small outbursts of anger or his disappointments, releasing them only on very few occasions.

This isolation from reality and the need to be focused on one’s inner world are conditioning factors when the person suffers some type of psychosis, since it will surely manifest itself in the form of schizophrenia.

Therefore, and according to the psychological characteristics described above, schizothymia would constitute a non-pathological version of schizophrenia in which the manifestation of negative symptoms predominates.

Origin and evolution of schizothymia

As mentioned in the previous point, Kretschmer was the one who coined the term schizothymia within his classification of psychiatric pathologies. This classification is based on the idea that there are four types or models of psychiatric personality which depend on the physical appearance of the person, maintaining an intrinsic and direct relationship between the body structure and the personality of the subjects.

After observing, examining and measuring a large number of subjects, Kretschmer made a classification of temperament based on the body and morphological structure of people. From this study he extracted three basic archetypes of temperament.

These were the asthenics or leptosomatics to whom the schizothymic temperament corresponds, the pynics with cyclothymic temperament and the athletics with viscous or ixothymic temperament In addition, he created a fourth category called “dysplastic” in which all those people who cannot be classified into the previous three would be included.

For a better understanding of this classification, the four categories created by Kretschmer are described below.

1. Leptosomal or schizothymic

The morphology of the leptosomal or schizothymic person is characterized by a long and thin constitution With contracted shoulders and back, thin skeleton and long, narrow trunk. They are also distinguished by a face with pale skin, a generous nose and an angular profile.

In terms of temperament, he corresponds to the schizothymic. Who, as described above, stands out for being unsociable, shy, introspective and reflective, pessimistic and irascible, but at the same time he is also tenacious, dreamy, idealistic and analytical.

2. Picnic or cyclothymic

According to the German psychiatrist, pyknic or cyclothymic people are distinguished by a physical appearance of a wide trunk and short arms and legs, as well as a normal height and rounded figure. In addition, they are susceptible to obesity and have a soft body in which fat abounds.

A person with a picnic type has a cyclothymic temperament. People with this temperament are distinguished by being affable, benevolent, affectionate and happy. But with sudden outbursts of anger, explosive and angry intermittently. However, they can also be sociable, talkative, practical and realistic.

3. Athletic or slimy

The person with an athletic morphology and viscous temperament has physical features such as a wide back and shoulders that narrow as they approach the waist, large and coarse limbs, robust bones and a rough complexion.

This type of body constitution is associated with a viscous temperament, which manifests itself through passive, emotionally stable behaviors calm, indifferent, lacking in imagination and sure of their vigor.

4. Dysplastic

Finally, this last categorization includes people with insufficient or excessive development, with some type of physical anomaly or who cannot be classified into any of the previous subtypes.

After this classification, and due to the criticism it has received over time, WH Sheldon, professor at Harvard University, created another parallel classification. This classification was also developed based on the person’s physique. However, in addition to physical build, Sheldon also took into account other factors such as viscerotonia or cerebrotonia.

According to Sheldon, people who manifest the schizothymic temperament proposed by Kerscher correspond to the “ectomorphic” subtype created by himself. A person with ectomorphic physical characteristics is distinguished by an emaciated dermis, poor musculature and fragile bones. As well as long and thin limbs.

Criticisms of the term schizothymic

As mentioned at the beginning of the article, the term schizothymic like the rest of the classification of temperaments, has not escaped criticism from the scientific community, which is why it has not enjoyed a long life, and has been replaced by a meaning with much more support: dysthymia.

Dysthymia and dysthymic disorder are characterized by a depressed mood. It is considered a chronic disorder in which the person is invaded by a series of melancholic feelings but does not constitute depression in itself.