Syndromes of schizophrenia and language dysfunction

This study investigated the relationship between performance on word association and sentence construction tasks and the three-syndrome model of schizophrenic symptoms. Participants were 70 inpatients with a primary diagnosis of schizophrenia. Each participant was rated on positive and negative symptom scales, and ratings were grouped into three syndromal patterns (Reality Distortion, Psychomotor Poverty, and Disorganization). Among the syndromes, only symptoms of disorganization were significantly related to the ability to construct meaningful sentences using word associations. Results suggest that symptoms of disorganization, length of hospitalization, and premorbid adjustment are dimensions that are related to language disturbance in patients with schizophrenia.