The nurse is performing the admission assessment for a client with schizophrenia in an acute care inpatient facility. The nurse should identify which observed behavior is characteristic of schizophrenia?

A. Responding with illogical answers to questions is characteristic of schizophrenia, particularly during periods of psychosis when the client may experience disorganized thinking and impaired reality testing. B. Admitting to frequently thinking about committing suicide is not specific to schizophrenia and may occur in various mental health conditions, such as depression or bipolar disorder. C. Describing times of depression followed by feelings of euphoria suggests a mood disorder, such as bipolar disorder, rather than schizophrenia. D. Exhibiting compulsive, ritualistic behaviors may be seen in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) but is not typically characteristic of schizophrenia. Schizophrenia is primarily characterized by positive symptoms (such as hallucinations and delusions), negative symptoms (such as blunted affect and social withdrawal), and cognitive symptoms (such as disorganized thinking and impaired executive function).