Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 23, 2026
12:00
Investigating the Effects of Antipsychotics and Schizotypy on the N400 Using Event-Related Potentials and Semantic Categorization
Published on: November 19, 2014
Longitudinal changes in semantic categorization performance after symptomatic remission from first-episode psychosis:
Christy Lai-Ming Hui1, Julia Longenecker, Gloria Hoi-Yan Wong
1Department of Psychiatry, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong. christy@lmhui.com
Schizophrenia Research
|March 28, 2012
Summary
Schizophrenia patients show semantic categorization deficits, improving with recovery. These improvements suggest a temporary state effect, not a permanent trait, in semantic memory abnormalities.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Psychiatry
- Neuroscience
Background:
- Semantic categorization abnormalities are noted in schizophrenia.
- Longitudinal studies on semantic performance during recovery are limited.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate semantic categorization performance in first-episode schizophrenia patients over 3 years.
- To examine the relationship between semantic performance and symptom changes during recovery.
Main Methods:
- 37 first-episode schizophrenia patients and 37 controls completed a semantic categorization task.
- Assessments occurred at baseline, stabilization, and annually for 3 years.
- Analyzed reaction times and 'yes' responses for words of varying semantic relatedness.
Main Results:
- First-episode patients exhibited semantic categorization abnormalities, assigning dissimilar words to categories more often than controls.
- Performance improved after clinical stabilization and remained stable for 3 years.
- Deficits, especially diminished typicality effect, correlated with negative symptoms initially but not after stabilization.
Conclusions:
- Semantic memory abnormalities are present in early schizophrenia but may be state-dependent.
- Improvement in semantic categorization suggests a reversible effect rather than a persistent trait.
- Findings highlight the dynamic nature of cognitive deficits in schizophrenia recovery.
Related Concept Videos
01:17Classification of Illness
The meaning of illness is individualized to each person who experiences an alteration in health. In contrast, disease is a medical term indicating a pathological change in the structure and function of the body or mind. It is a condition that has specific symptoms and boundaries.
An illness is a response to a disease in which the person's level of functioning is changed compared with a previous level. The general classification of illness includes acute and chronic.
Acute illness is severe and...
An illness is a response to a disease in which the person's level of functioning is changed compared with a previous level. The general classification of illness includes acute and chronic.
Acute illness is severe and...
02:20Longitudinal Research
Sometimes we want to see how people change over time, as in studies of human development and lifespan. When we test the same group of individuals repeatedly over an extended period of time, we are conducting longitudinal research. Longitudinal research is a research design in which data-gathering is administered repeatedly over an extended period of time. For example, we may survey a group of individuals about their dietary habits at age 20, retest them a decade later at age 30, and then again...
01:30Negative and Cognitive Symptoms of Schizophrenia
Negative symptoms of schizophrenia indicate a reduction or absence of typical behaviors and emotional responses found in healthy individuals, while positive symptoms reflect an excess or distortion of normal functioning.
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,...
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,...
01:26Longitudinal Studies
Longitudinal studies are also widely used in other medical and social science fields. For instance, in cardiovascular research, they can monitor patients' health over decades to identify risk factors for heart disease, such as high cholesterol or smoking, and evaluate the long-term effectiveness of preventive measures. Similarly, in mental health studies, researchers might follow individuals from adolescence into adulthood to understand the development and progression of conditions like...
01:29Psychological and Sociocultural Causes of Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia, a complex psychiatric disorder, has been historically misunderstood. Early psychological theories attributed its origins to childhood trauma and unresponsive parenting. However, contemporary research largely rejects these notions, favoring the vulnerability-stress hypothesis. This model proposes that individuals with a genetic predisposition to schizophrenia may develop the disorder following exposure to significant environmental stressors. Notably, studies on high-risk...
01:26Psychosis: Goals of Pharmacotherapy
Antipsychotic drugs are a crucial treatment method for acute and chronic psychoses, bipolar illness, and behavioral disorders. The selection of these drugs depends on several factors, including the state of the disease, clinical judgment, possible drug interactions, and the patient's sensitivity to adverse effects. In immediate scenarios, such as delirium and dementia, short-term treatment with low doses of high-potency typical or atypical agents can effectively manage symptom exacerbation. For...