Language-Related Symptoms in Persons with Schizophrenia and How Deaf Persons May Manifest These Symptoms

Abstract

Disturbances in language have long been viewed as a principal identifying characteristic of schizophrenia. The language-processing deficits of persons with schizophrenia are manifested in a variety of ways. Historically, analyses of schizophrenic patients� language disorders have focused almost entirely on speech. Deaf persons, however, constitute a portion of the population that is diagnosed as schizophrenic, and sign languages are often their principal means of communication. In recent years, preliminary observations have been reported that indicate that there are a number of similarities between the linguistic deficits of signing Deaf persons with schizophrenia and those evident in the speech of hearing schizophrenic patients. Systematic investigations of schizophrenic Deaf persons� signing need to be conducted both to improve treatment programs for Deaf patients and to increase our understanding of the language aspects of schizophrenia.

Identifying and Assessing Psychosis in Deaf Psychiatric Patients

“…There are few descriptions of thought disorder symptoms in deaf people with schizophrenia who are fluent ASL users [25,26]. Deaf patients have been observed using neologisms [25].…”

“…Deaf patients have been observed using neologisms [25]. Neologisms must be differentiated from regional variations in signs and home signs.…”

“…Neologisms must be differentiated from regional variations in signs and home signs. A variant of echolalia in which deaf people with schizophrenia mimic the sign of the person addressing them, termed echopraxia, also has been observed [25]. Clanging in deaf schizophrenia patients takes the form of repetitive use of particular shapes or signs without attention to their meaning [25,26].…”

“…A variant of echolalia in which deaf people with schizophrenia mimic the sign of the person addressing them, termed echopraxia, also has been observed [25]. Clanging in deaf schizophrenia patients takes the form of repetitive use of particular shapes or signs without attention to their meaning [25,26]. Symptoms such as derailment, incoherence due to failure to provide appropriate context, tangentiality, and loosening of associations present similarly in deaf and hearing people with schizophrenia [25].…”

“…Clanging in deaf schizophrenia patients takes the form of repetitive use of particular shapes or signs without attention to their meaning [25,26]. Symptoms such as derailment, incoherence due to failure to provide appropriate context, tangentiality, and loosening of associations present similarly in deaf and hearing people with schizophrenia [25]. Nevertheless, for non-ASL-fluent clinicians, the use of a certified ASL interpreter with specialized training in mental health is crucial to the accurate diagnosis of symptoms of thought disorder in deaf people.…”