The applicant's long-term goal is a successful academic career in clinical psychology. This training grant will enable the applicant to develop a program of research focusing on translational research applying basic social-cognitive techniques to research on schizophrenia spectrum disorders. Previous research suggests that anomalous experiences (e.g., unusual perceptual experiences) and defensive self-processing (e.g., low self-concept clarity) may be related to delusions in schizophrenia. However, the mechanisms that underlie anomalous experiences have been largely unexplored. One possible mechanism is aberrant salience (Kapur, 2003). Previous research suggests that anomalous experiences may not be sufficient to explain the development of delusions, and other social cognitive processes such as defensive self-processing may interact with anomalous experiences to produce delusions.
The specific aims of the current research are 1) to examine whether aberrant salience is associated with anomalous experiences and delusions, and 2) to examine whether the combination of aberrant salience and defensive self-processing is associated with distress, preoccupation, and conviction of delusions. In particular, the second specific aim is to examine whether participants with high aberrant salience and high defensive self-processing have high levels of delusions. The proposed research involves two studies. Study 1 will include people with schizophrenia, while study 2 will include people at risk for the development of schizophrenia. In both studies, we will test whether anomalous experiences mediate the relation between aberrant salience (measured with a novel cognitive task and questionnaire) and delusions. Second, we will test whether there is an interaction between aberrant salience and self-concept clarity, such that people with high aberrant salience and low self-concept clarity have high levels of delusions. Study 1 will allow for the assessment of these processes in a clinical population, while study 2 will address whether the effects of study 1 are related to antipsychotic medication use, which is a potential confound of almost all schizophrenia research. The current research has the potential to inform both prevention efforts and treatment for people with schizophrenia. Understanding the mechanisms of delusions may help identify people at risk for the development of schizophrenia, since delusion-like symptoms have been shown to predict future onset of schizophrenia and delusion-like symptoms may be among the first symptoms to appear in the prodromal phase of the illness. Moreover, understanding these mechanisms may impact both psychological and pharmacological treatments for schizophrenia.
