Emotional Stroop performance predicts disorganization in schizophrenia

An examination of emotional processing in individuals with schizophrenia may aid in understanding the heterogeneous disease states of schizophrenia. An emotional Stroop test, comprising conditions separated by both emotional valence (positive, negative) and arousal (low, high), was administered to disorganized (N = 12) and non-disorganized (N = 15) schizophrenic and schizoaffective participants, and 22 non-patient controls. Results indicate that the performance of disorganized versus non-disorganized participants differed particularly on the negative, high arousal condition. Understanding which symptom dimensions accompany aberrant emotion processing might be useful in understanding the mechanisms involved in the exacerbation of symptoms, particularly disorganization. Such information may lead to improved treatment and prevention strategies for schizophrenia spectrum diagnoses.