Patterns of cognitive asymmetry and syndromes of schizotypal personality.
The Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire, modeled on the nine components of DSM-III-R schizotypy, was administered to 122 medical students along with the Thayer Activation-Deactivation Adjective Checklist and the Warrington Recognition Memory Test for words and faces. Close affinities were found between a three-factor schizotypal personality structure and a three-syndrome model of schizophrenia. Different patterns of cognitive asymmetry (word-face discrepancy scores) were related to Active and Withdrawn syndromes as in schizophrenia, and were related to high activation and general deactivation differences as predicted. A prospective single case study showed that a face-word discrepancy before a first episode of schizophrenia accurately predicted a Withdrawn presenting syndrome. The consistency between syndromes of schizophrenia and schizotypal personality in a normal population suggests possible etiological links between the two, and it supports a dimensional view of psychosis and subclinical predispositions.
Gruzelier
J
J
Department of Psychiatry, Charing Cross and Westminster Medical School, London, UK.
Burgess
A
A
Stygall
J
J
Irving
G
G
Raine
A
A
D000328:Adult; D001245:Association Learning; D001288:Attention; D004292:Dominance, Cerebral; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011939:Mental Recall; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual; D010555:Personality Inventory / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011594:Psychometrics; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000175:diagnosis*; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology; D012569:Schizotypal Personality Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D012737:Sex Factors; D014706:Verbal Learning