Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 5, 2026

Methods to Explore the Influence of Top-down Visual Processes on Motor Behavior
Published on: April 16, 2014
Impaired sensory processing as a basis for object-recognition deficits in schizophrenia
G M Doniger1, G Silipo, E F Rabinowicz
1Cognitive Neuroscience and Schizophrenia Program, Nathan Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research, Orangeburg, NY 10962, USA.
Objective:
Individuals are able to recognize common objects even when portions of them are obscured from view, reflecting the operation of neural perceptual closure processes. This study evaluates the integrity of object recognition and perceptual closure as a function of sensory and cognitive manipulations.
Method:
Object recognition was examined in 26 subjects with schizophrenia and 23 nonpsychiatric comparison subjects of similar age with a presentation of fragmented pictures by means of the ascending method of limits. The effects of prior exposure to subsets of stimuli and of word prompting were examined in separate testing phases. Demographic and clinical characteristics were evaluated as covariates.
Results:
Although they had impairments in perceptual closure, schizophrenic patients showed improvement in performance equivalent to that of nonpatient comparison subjects with prior exposure to the pictures (i.e., repetition priming) and with presentation of valid word prompts. A significant correlation was found between impaired performance and the severity of negative symptoms.
Conclusions:
The results support models of widespread dysfunction in information processing in patients with schizophrenia involving both sensory and cognitive regions. Perceptual closure is significantly impaired in schizophrenic patients; however, this deficit in sensory precision is dissociated from the effects of higher-order repetition priming and word prompting. Furthermore, this work suggests that deficits in perceptual closure may contribute to the muted world experience of patients with the persistent negative symptoms of schizophrenia.
Related Concept Videos
Psychosis: Pathophysiology of Schizophrenia and Other Psychotic Disorders
Researchers have identified genetic factors that increase susceptibility to schizophrenia, underscoring the intricate interplay between genetics and environment in disease development. At the core of schizophrenia's pathophysiology is excessive dopaminergic neurotransmission within the...
Visual Agnosia
Prosopagnosia
Schizophrenia
Negative and Cognitive Symptoms of Schizophrenia
Negative Symptoms
Negative symptoms of schizophrenia manifest as deficits in normal emotional and behavioral functioning, profoundly impacting daily life. Individuals with schizophrenia often display a flat affect, characterized by a near-total absence of emotional expression,...
Positive Symptoms of Schizophrenia: Hallucinations and Delusions
Thought Disorders
Disorganized and unusual thought processes mark thought disorders in schizophrenia. One key feature is disorganized speech, where an individual's conversation includes loosely...

