Among schizophrenics, a reduction in verbal productivity is stable and is associated with poor prognosis and increased severity of disturbance. The goal of the proposed project is to utilize knowledge and methodological approaches developed in the related fields of psycholinguistics, neuropsychology, neurolinguistics, and linguistic aphasiology to test hypotheses concerning the etiology of alogia.
The specific aims of the proposed project are to examine whether alogia is associated with: (1) frontal lobe dysfunction; (2) a word finding deficit similar to that seen in anomic aphasia; (3) a deficit in verbal planning ability similar to that seen in dynamic aphasia; and (4) an information processing disturbance. In addition, the proposed project would examine whether the factors that are associated with alogia among schizophrenics are also associated with alogia among individuals with depressive disturbances. One hundred hospitalized psychiatric patients (50 individuals with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder, and 50 individuals with depressive disturbances) will be audiotaped while they answer a series of open-ended questions. These interviews will be used to measure verbal productivity, syntactic complexity, response latencies, within-clause pauses, and between-clause pauses. Subjects will also complete a series of tests designed to measure the functioning of several different brain regions, word finding ability, verbal and non-verbal planning abilities, and information processing abilities. The proposed study will not only improve our understanding of alogia, it will also enhance our understanding of the neurological and cognitive disturbances that underlie the development and chronic course of schizophrenia.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
Type
Small Research Grants (R03)
Project #
5R03MH050531-02
Application #
2249883
Study Section
Clinical Psychopathology Review Committee (CPP)
Project Start
1995-09-30
Project End
1998-08-31
Budget Start
1996-09-01
Budget End
1998-08-31
Support Year
2
Fiscal Year
1996
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
Name
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Department
Psychology
Type
Schools of Arts and Sciences
DUNS #
041544081
City
Champaign
State
IL
Country
United States
Zip Code
61820
Docherty, Anna R; Berenbaum, Howard; Kerns, John G (2011) Alogia and formal thought disorder: differential patterns of verbal fluency task performance. J Psychiatr Res 45:1352-7
Berenbaum, Howard; Kerns, John G; Vernon, Laura L et al. (2008) Cognitive correlates of schizophrenia signs and symptoms: I. Verbal communication disturbances. Psychiatry Res 159:147-56
Berenbaum, Howard; Kerns, John G; Vernon, Laura L et al. (2008) Cognitive correlates of schizophrenia signs and symptoms: II. Emotional disturbances. Psychiatry Res 159:157-62
Berenbaum, Howard; Kerns, John G; Vernon, Laura L et al. (2008) Cognitive correlates of schizophrenia signs and symptoms: III. Hallucinations and delusions. Psychiatry Res 159:163-6
Berenbaum, Howard; Valera, Eve M; Kerns, John G (2003) Psychological trauma and schizotypal symptoms. Schizophr Bull 29:143-52
Kerns, John G; Berenbaum, Howard (2003) The relationship between formal thought disorder and executive functioning component processes. J Abnorm Psychol 112:339-52
Kerns, John G; Berenbaum, Howard (2002) Cognitive impairments associated with formal thought disorder in people with schizophrenia. J Abnorm Psychol 111:211-24
Kerns, J G; Berenbaum, H (2000) Aberrant semantic and affective processing in people at risk for psychosis. J Abnorm Psychol 109:728-32
Berenbaum, H (1999) Peculiarity and reported childhood maltreatment. Psychiatry 62:21-35
Barch, D M; Berenbaum, H (1997) Language generation in schizophrenia and mania: the relationships among verbosity, syntactic complexity, and pausing. J Psycholinguist Res 26:401-12

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