Attentional Inhibition in Schizophrenia and Schizotypy: A Spatial Negative Priming Study

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Abstract
We investigated attentional inhibition in schizophrenia with a spatial negative priming task. In Study 1, we compared acutely psychotic schizophrenic inpatients with chronic schizophrenic outpatients in remission. Acute patients showed absence of spatial negative priming, in contrast to the chronic outpatients who displayed intact inhibition. In Study 2, we found that spatial negative priming was abolished in healthy, first-degree relatives of schizophrenic patients, indicating a possible impairment of attentional inhibition, in the absence of medication. In Study 3, we examined the individual differences in spatial negative priming in relation to schizotypy. A small reduction in negative prime effect was found in the schizotypic subjects. Reduced negative priming was much more pronounced in schizotypic women than in schizotypic men, indicating a possible influence of gender.