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1. No. OCD and paranoia are different disorders. It is possible for a person to have both, but people with OCD don't always suffer from paranoia.
2. Both. However, I think paranoia is more likely to be caused by chemical imbalances.
The word "paranoid" when used by psychiatrists has a slightly different meaning from its meaning in everyday use. If a person is generally suspicious of other people, lay people may call that paranoia, but in psychiatry, paranoia is when a person has false, often bizarre, but unshakeable, beliefs, which are not a part of his or her culture.
For example, if a thief thinks that the police are trying to catch him (even if they are not) that is not paranoia - he has a good reason to think that the police are trying to catch him. However, if a person suddenly starts to think (with no good reason) that his neighbours or colleagues are trying to harm him, that is paranoia. Paranoid ideas can be quite bizarre - sometimes people can think that their thoughts are being controlled or that someone is listening to their thoughts through secret receivers, etc. These kinds of beliefs usually indicate some kind of psychosis, which is a kind of mental disorder where there a loss of contact with reality, whereas OCD is a neurosis, where the patient's ability to think rationally is not affected.
I think neurosis-type disorders tend to respond better to psychotherapy/cognitive behaviour therapy, etc., whereas for psychosis-type disorders, the first-line treatment is with medication.
Still, I'm not an expert. You really should check with an expert.
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Thank you Bipolar, for the insight!
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Hello Bipolar
thank you for responding, I know this undergrad stuff maybe boring for some of you guys, but I find reading the way other people put ideas into words and helps me and discussing it can motivate me to work on it.
Okay so much for the begging here is a typical assignment question on the Communist manefesto.
“The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles”
(2) explain how class struggle arises out of the mode of
production, both in general and in the case of capitalist society,
(3) indicate how, according to Marx and Engels, the class
struggle will develop in capitalist society
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I'M SO SORRY...
but I can't help you right now, Fridge...
As it happens, I've got my own final exams coming up in about a month's time... am going to be incredibly busy till I finish...
Maybe then (middle of September), if you're still interested, I can discuss the stuff with you, if you would still find it useful...
EVEN THEN, my interest is in cognitive neuroscience/psychology, rather than sociology... BUT, I'd still be glad to spend time reading up on sociology stuff to discuss with you, if you wish...
Just by the way, an Adobe Acrobat copy of Encyclopedia of Sociology (MacMillan Reference Books, 2000) by Borgatta and Montgomery is available here, if you're interested (click on the link, then follow the instructions on the page).
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No Problem Bipolar
Thank you for the links.
Will post some questions related to Cognitive psychology.
Enjoy the studying