The role of attention processes in facial affect recognition in schizophrenia

Studies investigating the involvement of attention processes in facial affect recognition (FAR) have been contradictory, with some suggesting a generalised cognitive deficit, whereas others a specialised deficit in affect recognition. Given the ubiquity of both attention and emotion perception deficits in schizophrenia, we examined whether specific attentional processes, in fact, mediate FAR.

Patients with schizophrenia (n = 38) and healthy controls (n = 24) performed tests assessing FAR and attention processes, specifically, visual attention (Trail Making Test A), sustained attention/inhibition (Rapid Visual Processing subtest; Cambridge Automated Neuropsychological Test Battery), and attention to details in facial features (AFF). AFF and FAR were assessed with newly devised experimental procedures.

Hierarchical multiple regression analyses showed a similar pattern of association between attention processes and FAR in both participant groups with respect to all attention processes investigated, predicting FAR accuracy. Additionally, visual attention predicted accuracy in happiness, disgust and surprise, whereas AFF predicted accuracy in anger and fear. Regarding FAR processing speed, no attention process predicted participants' performance on correct responses; AFF response speed predicted participants' FAR response speed, but only on incorrect responses.

The present findings highlight the role of attentional processes in emotion recognition, as deficits in the former were predictive of impairments in the latter. Furthermore, AFF appears to be involved in the discrimination of negatively valenced facial expressions. The lack of association between attentional processes and FAR processing speed, particularly regarding correct responses, might reflect the differential pattern of activation of cortical and subcortical structures involved in these cognitive processes.