Body language reading of emotion in schizophrenia: Associations with symptoms and functional outcome

Our aim was to explore how body language reading of emotion relates to neurocognition, symptoms and functional outcome in schizophrenia. Fifty-four individuals with schizophrenia and eighty-four healthy controls participated in the study. Emotion perception was assessed with a point-light display (PLD) task, the Emotion in Biological Motion (EmoBio) test, neurocognition was measured with the MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery (MCCB), and functioning was indexed by one measure of functional capacity and by one self-report questionnaire. Clinical symptoms were assessed with a five factor Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) symptoms model. Participants with schizophrenia had impaired body language reading of emotions compared to healthy controls (Cohen's d = 0.69). In participants with schizophrenia, emotion perception was associated with neurocognition (r = 0.42), functional capacity (r = 0.27) and disorganization symptoms (r = -0.27). Mediation analyses showed that disorganization symptoms mediated the effects of emotion perception and neurocognition, respectively, on social functional capacity. These results suggest that in individuals with schizophrenia, reduced emotion perception from body movements has negative consequences for functional outcome, but that the effect is mediated through disorganization symptoms.