Evaluation of the factor structure of symptoms in patients with schizophrenia

Considering the widespread use of the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) and its factors around the world in clinical trials, it is clearly necessary to perform a transcultural validation of the factor structure of the PANSS. The purpose of the present study was to examine the PANSS factor structure in a Korean sample of subjects with schizophrenia. A total of 150 outpatients were assessed using the PANSS and other clinical rating scales. Principal component analyses revealed five factors, i.e., negative, cognitive/disorganization, positive, excitement, and depression/anxiety dimensions, which accounted for 64.1% of the total variance. All five factors showed good internal consistency, suggesting that the reliability of the factors extracted was adequate. Significant correlations were found between the five components of the PANSS and the corresponding clinical rating scales. The results of the present study indicate that the five-factor model best fit the data from our patients and that it was validated transculturally. The factor structures should be further validated using various neurobiological methods to ultimately help in clarifying the heterogeneity and pathogenesis of symptomatology in schizophrenia.