Decomposing perseverative errors among undergraduates scoring high on the Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Psychology
• Neuroscience
• Psychopathology

Background:

• Cognitive control (CC) is crucial for goal-directed behavior but is impaired in schizophrenia-spectrum disorders.
• Set-shifting deficits, often seen as perseverative errors, are a key CC impairment.
• The Dimensional Change Card Sorting Task (DCCS) differentiates sources of perseverative errors, unlike the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate schizotypal-related mechanisms underlying set-shifting abnormalities using the DCCS.
• To compare cognitive control performance between individuals scoring high (High-SPQ) and average (Ave-SPQ) on the Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire.
• To identify specific conditions within the DCCS that reveal set-shifting deficits in high-schizotypy individuals.

Main Methods:

• Administered the DCCS to college students categorized as High-SPQ and Ave-SPQ.
• Analyzed perseverative responses across pre-switch, switch, and post-switch trials.
• Examined the contributions of negative priming, positive priming, and extra-dimensional shifting to errors.

Main Results:

• High-SPQ participants demonstrated significantly more perseverative responses compared to Ave-SPQ participants.
• This increase in perseverative errors was specifically concentrated in the positive priming post-switch condition.
• Findings suggest a targeted deficit in cognitive flexibility related to positive priming in individuals with high schizotypal traits.

Conclusions:

• Set-shifting abnormalities in schizotypy are not global but specific to certain cognitive processes, particularly positive priming.
• Potential underlying mechanisms include depletion of cognitive resources or altered strategy commitment.
• The DCCS is a valuable tool for dissecting cognitive control deficits in schizotypal personality.