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[Proposal for a new descriptive psycho-physiopathological model of schizophrenia]
Abstract:
We present the conclusions of a study of pattern recognition in an intermittent luminous stimulation. This stimulation was stable on the one hand and on the other hand on fixed time basis (S.L.I. pulsations emitted by two flickers) and other associated tests (reaction time, Rorschach Test, etc). We have compared a population of 30 schizophrenics (French classification) and a reference group of 53 adult subjects of both sexes. We have not divided the patients into subclasses according to their symptoms. We have noticed in a significant manner the following signs: great vigilance at the beginning, decreasing very quickly, low attentiveness, a slowness of perception and motion, a weakness in the elaboration of decision processus, certain difficulties in defining the classification of objects, a modified perception of colours, a very feeble distinction of pertinent signals and of noise, an invasion by the internal stimulus, unbalanced compared to "outside", as in sensory deprivation, a great weakness in the processus of habituation and learning, a loss of the redundancy and the constancy of the outside world (or troubles of the internal coherency, as defined by Varela). The closure, the temporal troubles (historical and present) of the integration of signals are sufficient to explain these results. A model explains the deduced hypothesis on two levels: 1) historical: the troubles of habituation and learning prevent the formation of the inner stimulus (or image, representation); 2) present: closure, ambivalence (Gödel), troubles of associations, difficulties in detecting what is pertinent, hallucinations (a "delirious" internal stimulus). The specific brain-channels seem to be normal, on the contrary the non-specific channels and the channels of integration seem troubled. The temporal trouble of "present" seems to be located on a precocious precategorical iconic level. This descriptive model does not prejudge the etiology of the disease (bibliography).