title: Neurocognition and occupational functioning in schizophrenia spectrum disorders: The MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery (MCCB) and workplace assessments.
abstract: The MCCB is widely used in clinical trials of schizophrenia, but its relationship to occupational functioning still needs further elaboration. While previous research has indicated that various domains of neurocognition assessed by individual tests are related to work functioning, these reports preceded the development of the MCCB as the standard neurocognitive test battery in the field. In the current study, the vocational functioning of 131 Norwegian participants with schizophrenia spectrum disorders who were enrolled in a vocational rehabilitation program were assessed on the Vocational Cognitive Rating Scale (VCRS), the Work Behavior Inventory (WBI), and the Complexity Scale (CS) as well as on the MCCB. Significant correlations were found between most MCCB domains and VCRS Total Score. MCCB processing speed and attention were most powerfully related to and predictive of WBI scores. When participants were divided into "low complexity" or "higher complexity" work categories, participants in the "low-complexity" group performed significantly worse than participants in the "higher-complexity" group regarding processing speed, working memory, visual learning and the composite score. The same pattern emerged for participants working sheltered compared to competitive jobs. The VCRS, WBI and CS may be useful in vocational rehabilitation. They bridge an important gap between test- and occupational-setting, providing valuable information about impairments related to occupational functioning. We found the MCCB to be sensitive to occupational functioning as measured by VCRS, WBI and CS, with neurocognition accounting for a small but significant proportion of the variance in these different measures of occupational functioning.
authors.affiliation: Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Postboks 4959 Nydalen, 0424 Oslo, Norway. Electronic address: June.Lystad@medisin.uio.no.
authors.forename: June Ullevoldsæter
authors.initials: JU
authors.lastname: Lystad
authors.affiliation: Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Postboks 4959 Nydalen, 0424 Oslo, Norway; Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Postboks 1039 Blindern, 0315 Oslo, Norway.
authors.forename: Erik
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Falkum
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Postboks 1094 Blindern, 0317 Oslo, Norway; Department of Psychiatry, Sørlandet Hospital Trust, Department of Psychiatry, Service Box 416, 4604 Kristiansand, Norway.
authors.forename: Vegard Øksendal
authors.initials: VØ
authors.lastname: Haaland
authors.affiliation: Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Postboks 4959 Nydalen, 0424 Oslo, Norway.
authors.forename: Helen
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Bull
authors.affiliation: Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Postboks 4959 Nydalen, 0424 Oslo, Norway.
authors.forename: Stig
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Evensen
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Yale School of Medicine, Psychology Service 116B, VACHS, 950 Campbell Avenue, West Haven, CT 06516, USA; Department of Veterans Affairs, Rehabilitation R&D Service, Psychology Service 116B, VACHS, 950 Campbell Avenue, West Haven, CT 06516, USA.
authors.forename: Morris D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Bell
authors.affiliation: Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Postboks 4959 Nydalen, 0424 Oslo, Norway; Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Postboks 1094 Blindern, 0317 Oslo, Norway.
authors.forename: Torill
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ueland
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007858:Learning; D008297:Male; D008570:Memory, Short-Term; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000534:rehabilitation; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology; D014796:Visual Perception; D017132:Workplace
keywords: Complexity Scale; MCCB; Neurocognition; Real world functioning; VCRS; WBI