No abstract

schizophrenics by means of a condensed, ad hoc developed, semistructured exploratory checklist (i.e. Brief Experiential Vulnerability Assessment) and compared with two experimental control groups (i.e. unrelated healthy subjects and DSM-IV Schizotypal Personality Disorder patients). Results: Unaffected siblings exhibited intermediate, non pathological scores in all the schizotypal dimensions (i.e. ''Positive'', ''Negative'' and ''Oddness'') and in some self-experiential domains as compared to the control samples. Regression analyses indicate that schizotypal interpersonal deficit (i.e. Negative factor) and subjective experience of anomalous autopsychism (i.e. Self-disorders), are the best predictors of schizotaxic risk. Conclusions: Self-disorders and the interpersonal factor of schizotypy delineate a combined target phenotype which plausibly reflects the heritable schizophrenia spectrum predisposition and may be relevant for identifying vulnerable subjects in non-clinically-overt conditions.