title: Nonverbal social perception and symptomatology in schizophrenia.
abstract: This study examined the relationship between nonverbal social perception and symptomatology in schizophrenia. Schizophrenic patients (n=28) and normal controls (n=28) were given the profile of nonverbal sensitivity test (PONS). Patients' symptoms were rated with the brief psychiatric rating scale (BPRS). Schizophrenic subjects performed significantly more poorly than normal subjects in their ability to decode nonverbal cues. In addition, normal subjects improved their accuracy significantly more than patients when provided with additional cues per scene to decode. The patients' total PONS score was not significantly correlated with the BPRS summary scores for positive or negative symptoms, but was significantly correlated with the individual positive symptom of conceptual disorganization. Subjects classified as having paranoid schizophrenia (n=11) on the basis of chart diagnoses performed significantly better on the PONS than did undifferentiated schizophrenic subjects (n=13). The discussion reviews how these results contribute to our understanding of social deficits in schizophrenia.
authors.affiliation: Harvard Medical School Department of Psychiatry (116A) at the Massachusetts Mental Health Center and Brockton/West Roxbury Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 940 Belmont Street, Brockton, MA 02301, USA. rosemary_toomey@hms.harvard.edu
authors.forename: Rosemary
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Toomey
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Schuldberg
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Corrigan
authors.forename: Michael F
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Green
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002908:Chronic Disease; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009633:Nonverbal Communication; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011618:Psychotic Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000175:diagnosis*; D012562:Schizophrenia, Disorganized / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology; D012938:Social Perception