Semantic memory is both impaired and anomalous in schizophrenia

The integrity of semantic memory in schizophrenia was examined in a reaction time task requiring subjects to verify words as members or non-members of a conceptual category, where the words differed in their degree of semantic relationship to the category. Compared to matched normal controls, 28 sch...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Psychological medicine 1994-02, Vol.24 (1), p.193-202
Main Authors: Chen, E. Y. H., Wilkins, A. J., McKenna, P. J.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Adult and adolescent clinical studies
Biological and medical sciences
Female
Humans
Language Disorders - diagnosis
Language Disorders - etiology
Language Tests
Male
Medical sciences
Memory Disorders - etiology
Original Articles
Patients
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychopathology. Psychiatry
Psychoses
Schizophrenia
Schizophrenic Psychology
Semantic memory
Semantics
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Summary:The integrity of semantic memory in schizophrenia was examined in a reaction time task requiring subjects to verify words as members or non-members of a conceptual category, where the words differed in their degree of semantic relationship to the category. Compared to matched normal controls, 28 schizophrenic patients were impaired on the task, showing slower responses in all conditions. In addition, their performance was anomalous in that they took longest to respond to items that were outside the category but semantically related to it, in contrast to the controls who took the longest to respond to ambiguous words at the borderline of the category. The pattern of ‘yes’ and ‘no’ responses of the patients was anomalous in a similar way. In both speed and accuracy of responding, the findings indicate that there is an outward shift of semantic category boundaries in schizophrenia.
ISSN:0033-2917
1469-8978
DOI:10.1017/S0033291700026957