[The concept of working memory in schizophrenia: current evidence and future perspectives]

Working memory (WM) deficits are core symptoms of cognitive impairment in schizophrenia. The psychological concept of WM offers a theoretical and empirical framework for the investigation of perceptual and attentional dysfunction as well as of deficits of higher cognitive functions in schizophrenia. From a theoretical perspective, schizophrenic psychopathology and cognitive dysfunction can be both integrated and experimentally validated within the concept of WM-impairment. In the last years investigation of WM has been a major issue in neuropsychiatric research, not least because of the association of prefrontal cortex and WM-function. The advent of functional imaging techniques, e. g. functional magnetic resonance imaging (fmri) has additionally contributed in generating neurobiological WM-models. Regarding the neuronal basis of WM-deficits in schizophrenia, prefrontal cortex dysfunction has been of major interest. This review provides a short overview on the concept of WM and its relevance for cognitive psychology, discussing both recent behavioral and functional neuroimaging evidence on WM-dysfunction in schizophrenia.