Relationship of obsessive-compulsive symptomatology to anxiety, depression and schizotypy in a clinical population

The relationship of obsessive-compulsive symptomatology to anxiety disorders, mood disorders and schizophrenia continues to be controversial. In a sample of 117 psychiatric out-patients, we examined the relationship of obsessive-compulsive symptomatology to indices of anxiety, depression and schizotypy. The relationship between obsessive-compulsive symptomatology and schizotypy was found to be significantly higher than that between obsessive-compulsive symptoms and either anxiety or depression. These findings are consistent with recent studies suggesting that there are similar cognitive deficits associated with obsessive-compulsive symptoms and schizotypy and that obsessive-compulsive disorders may be more closely aligned to the schizophrenic constellation of disorders than to anxiety disorders.