Abstract
Traditional concepts of avolition (Kraepelin) and ambivalence (Bleuler) among schizophrenic patients can be interpreted in the light of present ideas of motivation and volition. Accordingly schizophrenic patients are marked both by oppositional high hope and fear components of implicit motives and by the impairment of volitional selfregulation, which both are vulnerability factors. In an environment lacking stimuli the patients cannot surpass their ambivalence through volitional selfregulation and remain passive. In this study 61 schizophrenic patients are compared with a control group of 69 non-patients. As expected, the schizophrenic patients show significant higher fear components of the implicit affiliation, achievement, and power motives, as well as an increased hope component of the affiliation motive. The comparison of subgroups of schizophrenic patients with distinguishing symptoms reveals no differences, which supports the assumption of stable traits.