Object relations and reality testing in early- and late-onset schizophrenia.
One hundred fifty-seven U.S. military veterans with schizophrenia were divided into early-onset (i.e., onset at age 20 or before, n = 36) and late-onset (i.e., onset after age 30, n = 28) groups and completed the Bell Object Relations and Reality Testing Inventory (BORRTI), the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale, and several representative neuropsychological instruments. Participants were compared on background characteristics and test measures. The early-onset group demonstrated significantly more object-relations and reality-testing deficits than the late-onset group. In contrast, no significant group differences were found on symptom or neuropsychological variables. An a posteriori three-group analysis that included the middle age of onset group (i.e., ages 21 to 30) found that the middle group had mean values that fell between early- and late-onset groups on most variables. No distinct patterns of BORRTI subscale scores distinguished the middle group. The finding that object-relations and reality-testing deficits are more pronounced in early-onset schizophrenia has implications for the treatment and rehabilitation of schizophrenia.
Greig
T C
TC
Psychology Service, VA CT Medical Center, West Haven 06516, USA.
Bell
M D
MD
Kaplan
E
E
Bryson
G
G
D000328:Adult; D017668:Age of Onset; D004532:Ego; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D009769:Object Attachment; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011573:Psychoanalytic Interpretation; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology; D014481:United States; D014728:Veterans