Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 9, 2026

Handwriting Analysis Indicates Spontaneous Dyskinesias in Neuroleptic Naïve Adolescents at High Risk for Psychosis
Published on: November 21, 2013
Neurocognitive performance and functional disability in the psychosis prodrome
Tara A Niendam1, Carrie E Bearden, Jennifer K Johnson
1Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1563, USA. tniendam@ucla.edu
Objective:
This study evaluates the pattern of neuropsychological deficits and their association with clinical symptomatology and social functioning in individuals identified as ultra-high-risk (UHR) for psychosis.
Methods:
A sample of 45 UHR individuals was identified using the Structured Interview for Prodromal Syndromes (SIPS) from consecutive referrals to the Staglin Music Festival Center for the Assessment and Prevention of Prodromal States (CAPPS) at UCLA. Participants were administered a neurocognitive test battery, as well as measures of global (Strauss-Carpenter Outcome Scale) and social functioning (UCLA Social Attainment Survey).
Results:
Participants showed significant deficits in speed of processing, verbal learning and memory, and motor speed. Poorer verbal learning and memory performance was significantly associated with poorer social functioning, and there was a trend for poorer performance on reasoning and problem solving to be associated with poorer global functioning. Verbal memory independently predicted social functioning over and above severity of negative symptoms. Cognitive deficits were not associated with severity of clinical symptomatology.
Conclusions:
Despite the absence of fully psychotic symptoms, UHR individuals experience significant cognitive deficits, particularly on tasks requiring speeded information-processing and efficient recall from memory, and these deficits appear to be associated with functional disability in a manner parallel to that observed in patients with established psychotic illness.
Related Concept Videos
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,...
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...
Schizophrenia
Psychological and Sociocultural Causes of Schizophrenia
Alzheimer Disease l: Introduction
Biological Causes of Schizophrenia
Genetic Factors in Schizophrenia
The genetic basis of schizophrenia is strongly supported by family and twin studies.

