Dimensionality of schizotypy in young people according to sex and age

The dimensionality of schizotypy and differences, according to sex and age, were studied with a new instrument called The Thinking and Perceptual Style Questionnaire (TPSQ). Participants were 789 young people with a mean age of 19.7 years (SD = 1.65). The results indicated that the TPSQ has adequate psychometric properties, with a Cronbach’s α coefficient of 0.91, ranging from 0.73 to 0.87 for the subscales. The construct validity gives a four-dimensional solution of the scales. Furthermore, statistically significant differences in schizotypy were found as a function of sex and age. Men scored higher on Anhedonia and Illusion subscales, whilst women scored higher on Negative Evaluation, Social Paranoia and Hallucination subscales. By age, the youngest participants tend to score higher on the Physical Anhedonia and Hallucination subscales. Thus, the TPSQ would appear to be a useful instrument for measuring schizotypal traits in young people, although future research will be needed to explore its relationship with neurocognitive, clinical and social functioning measures.