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Giordano GM, Pezzella P, Mucci A, Austin SF, Erfurth A, Glenthøj B, Hofer A, Hubenak J, Libiger J, Melle I, Nielsen MØ, Rybakowski JK, Wojciak P, Galderisi S, Sachs G. Negative symptoms and social cognition as mediators of the relationship between neurocognition and functional outcome in schizophrenia. Front Psychiatry 2024; 15:1333711. [PMID: 38356912 PMCID: PMC10864497 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2024.1333711] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2023] [Accepted: 01/15/2024] [Indexed: 02/16/2024] Open
Abstract
Introduction In this study we assessed the contribution of psychopathology, including the two domains of negative symptoms (motivational deficit and expressive deficit), processing speed as an index of neurocognition, and emotion recognition, as an index of social cognition, to poor functional outcomes in people with schizophrenia. Methods The Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale was used to evaluate positive symptoms and disorganization and the Brief Negative Symptom Scale to assess negative symptoms. The Symbol Coding and the Trail Making Test A and B were used to rate processing speed and the Facial Emotion Identification Test to assess emotion recognition. Functional outcome was assessed with the Personal and Social Performance Scale (PSP). Regression analyses were performed to identify predictors of functional outcome. Mediation analyses was used to investigate whether social cognition and negative symptom domains fully or partially mediated the impact of processing speed on functional outcome. Results One hundred and fifty subjects from 8 different European centers were recruited. Our data showed that the expressive deficit predicted global functioning and together with motivational deficit fully mediated the effects of neurocognition on it. Motivational deficit was a predictor of personal and social functioning and fully mediated neurocognitive impairment effects on the same outcome. Both motivational deficit and neurocognitive impairment predicted socially useful activities, and the emotion recognition domain of social cognition partially mediated the impact of neurocognitive deficits on this outcome. Conclusions Our results indicate that pathways to functional outcomes are specific for different domains of real-life functioning and that negative symptoms and social cognition mediate the impact of neurocognitive deficits on different domains of functioning. Our results suggest that both negative symptoms and social cognition should be targeted by psychosocial interventions to enhance the functional impact of neurocognitive remediation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giulia M. Giordano
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Naples, Italy
| | - Pasquale Pezzella
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Naples, Italy
| | - Armida Mucci
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Naples, Italy
| | - Stephen F. Austin
- Psychiatric Research Unit, Region Zealand Psychiatry, Slagelse, Denmark
| | - Andreas Erfurth
- 6th Psychiatric Department, Otto-Wagner-Spital, Vienna, Austria
| | - Birte Glenthøj
- Center for Neuropsychiatric Schizophrenia Research (CNSR) and Center for Clinical Intervention and Neuropsychiatric Schizophrenia Research (CINS), Mental Health Center Glostrup, Glostrup, Denmark
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Alex Hofer
- Medical University Innsbruck, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy, Psychosomatics and Medical Psychology, Division of Psychiatry I, Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Jan Hubenak
- Department of Psychiatry, Charles University, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Hradec Králové, Hradec Králové, Czechia
| | - Jan Libiger
- Department of Psychiatry, Charles University, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Hradec Králové, Hradec Králové, Czechia
| | - Ingrid Melle
- NORMENT Centre, Institute of Clinical Psychiatry, University of Oslo and Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
| | - Mette Ø. Nielsen
- Center for Neuropsychiatric Schizophrenia Research (CNSR) and Center for Clinical Intervention and Neuropsychiatric Schizophrenia Research (CINS), Mental Health Center Glostrup, Glostrup, Denmark
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Janusz K. Rybakowski
- Department of Adult Psychiatry, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, Poznan, Poland
| | - Pawel Wojciak
- Department of Adult Psychiatry, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, Poznan, Poland
| | - Silvana Galderisi
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Naples, Italy
| | - Gabriele Sachs
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
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