Subjective and Objective Cognitive Dysfunction in Schizophrenia – is there a Link?

Abstract

Cognitive dysfunction is a well recognized symptom of schizophrenia, as well as patients having poor insight into their illness. The subjective scale to investigate cognition in schizophrenia (SSTICS) is one of several scales that have been developed to study subjective cognitive dysfunction and has been compared to patients’ objective cognitive level. A literature search was performed using PubMed, psychINFO, Web of Science, and cross-referencing to find 26 articles which used 14 different subjective cognitive dysfunction scales to investigate the relationship between subjective and objective measures of cognition in schizophrenia. Although the majority of studies using the SSTICS found significant correlations between subjective and objective measures of cognition, the findings from the other scales were less clear. From this review, the issue of whether or not schizophrenic patients have good cognitive insight remains unsure. However, due to the heterogeneous nature of the study designs and their outcome measures, continued work in this area with consistency on these points is necessary; on the path to better provide management options for a very debilitating component of this illness.

Objective and subjective cognitive functioning in relation to psychopathology among women with early psychosis

“…Supporting our first hypothesis, objective and subjective cognitive functions were found not correlated with each other. This is in keeping with previous studies that also did not find significant associations (Chang et al, ; Homayoun et al, ). Note that this pattern of results was as well replicated in people across various conditions other than psychosis.…”

“…Some people with schizophrenia who complain about their cognitive functioning did not actually show cognitive deficits on objective cognitive measures (Holthausen et al, ). Homayoun, Nadeau‐Marcotte, Luck, and Stip () reviewed 26 studies and only half showed an association between OCI and SCI. Other individual studies also reported a relatively weak to null association in schizophrenia (Chan et al, ; Prouteau et al, ; Stip, Caron, Renaud, Pampoulova, & Lecomte, ).…”

La conscience des déficits neurocognitifs dans la schizophrénie : une méta-analyse

“…Les résultats de la présente méta-analyse ne corroborent pas cette hypothèse, et suggèrent plutôt que le manque de conscience des déficits neurocognitifs et le manque d'autocritique par rapport à la « maladie » sont des phéno-mènes largement indépendants. En 2006, Stip a formé le terme de « schizo-anosognosie » afin de départager le manque d'autocritique par rapport aux déficits cognitifs du manque d'autocritique tel qu'on le conçoit traditionnellement, soit le manque d'autocritique par rapport à la « maladie » (Homayoun et al, 2011). Les résultats de la présente méta-analyse confortent la pertinence du concept de schizo-anosognosie, de même que les efforts investis dans la littérature métacogni-tive afin d'identifier les différentes formes de manque d'autocritique dans la schizophrénie (Gilleen et al, 2011).…”

Association between the scores of the Japanese version of the Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia and whole‐brain structure in patients with chronic schizophrenia: A voxel‐based morphometry and diffusion tensor imaging study

“…Schizophrenia is a psychiatric disorder characterized by positive and negative psychopathological symptoms and cognitive deficits . Many instruments have been developed for the assessment of cognitive functions in patients with schizophrenia . Among them, the Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia (BACS) is a concise tool designed to evaluate cognitive functions that are characteristically impaired in patients with schizophrenia …”