Biomaterial Database

Language comprehension and working memory language comprehension and working memory deficits in patients with schizophrenia. 2003

Daniel M Bagner, and Meredith R D Melinder, and Deanna M Barch

Department of Psychology, Washington University, Box 1125, One Brookings Drive, 63130, St. Louis, MO, USA.

The present study examined the hypothesis that patients with schizophrenia have deficits in language comprehension compared to normal controls, and that these deficits are associated with disturbances in working memory (WM). In addition, we hypothesized that language comprehension deficits would be associated with the severity of specific symptoms in the patients (formal thought disorder and hallucinations). Participants were 27 stable outpatients with schizophrenia and 28 demographically similar controls. Language comprehension was measured by presenting sentences auditorily that varied in length and syntactic complexity, followed by two or three comprehension questions. We measured working memory by administering a reading span task. Results indicated that, as predicted, language comprehension deficits were significantly greater in patients with schizophrenia than controls. Also as predicted, working memory was strongly correlated with language comprehension performance in both patients with schizophrenia and controls. Contrary to our predictions, language comprehension and working memory deficits were not associated with either formal thought disorder or hallucinations.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D007360	Intelligence	The ability to learn and to deal with new situations and to deal effectively with tasks involving abstractions.
D007802	Language	A verbal or nonverbal means of communicating ideas or feelings.	Dialect,Dialects,Languages
D007807	Language Tests	Tests designed to assess language behavior and abilities. They include tests of vocabulary, comprehension, grammar and functional use of language, e.g., Development Sentence Scoring, Receptive-Expressive Emergent Language Scale, Parsons Language Sample, Utah Test of Language Development, Michigan Language Inventory and Verbal Language Development Scale, Illinois Test of Psycholinguistic Abilities, Northwestern Syntax Screening Test, Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test, Ammons Full-Range Picture Vocabulary Test, and Assessment of Children's Language Comprehension.	Language Comprehension Tests,Vocabulary Tests,Boston Diagnostic Aphasia Examination,Boston Naming Test,Comprehensive Aphasia Test,Multilingual Aphasia Examination,Language Test
D008297	Male		Males
D008570	Memory, Short-Term	Remembrance of information for a few seconds to hours.	Immediate Recall,Memory, Immediate,Working Memory,Memory, Shortterm,Immediate Memories,Immediate Memory,Immediate Recalls,Memories, Immediate,Memories, Short-Term,Memories, Shortterm,Memory, Short Term,Recall, Immediate,Recalls, Immediate,Short-Term Memories,Short-Term Memory,Shortterm Memories,Shortterm Memory,Working Memories
D011930	Reaction Time	The time from the onset of a stimulus until a response is observed.	Response Latency,Response Speed,Response Time,Latency, Response,Reaction Times,Response Latencies,Response Times,Speed, Response,Speeds, Response
D011932	Reading	Acquiring information from text.
D005260	Female		Females
D006212	Hallucinations	Subjectively experienced sensations in the absence of an appropriate stimulus, but which are regarded by the individual as real. They may be of organic origin or associated with MENTAL DISORDERS.	Hallucination of Body Sensation,Hallucinations, Auditory,Hallucinations, Dissociative,Hallucinations, Elementary,Hallucinations, Formed, of People,Hallucinations, Gustatory,Hallucinations, Hypnagogic,Hallucinations, Hypnapompic,Hallucinations, Internal Body Sensation,Hallucinations, Kinesthetic,Hallucinations, Mood Congruent,Hallucinations, Mood Incongruent,Hallucinations, Olfactory,Hallucinations, Organic,Hallucinations, Reflex,Hallucinations, Sensory,Hallucinations, Somatic,Hallucinations, Tactile,Hallucinations, Verbal Auditory,Hallucinations, Visual,Hallucinations, Visual, Formed,Hallucinations, Visual, Unformed,Auditory Hallucination,Auditory Hallucination, Verbal,Auditory Hallucinations,Auditory Hallucinations, Verbal,Body Sensation Hallucination,Body Sensation Hallucinations,Dissociative Hallucination,Dissociative Hallucinations,Elementary Hallucination,Elementary Hallucinations,Gustatory Hallucination,Gustatory Hallucinations,Hallucination,Hallucination, Auditory,Hallucination, Dissociative,Hallucination, Elementary,Hallucination, Gustatory,Hallucination, Hypnagogic,Hallucination, Hypnapompic,Hallucination, Kinesthetic,Hallucination, Mood Congruent,Hallucination, Mood Incongruent,Hallucination, Olfactory,Hallucination, Organic,Hallucination, Reflex,Hallucination, Sensory,Hallucination, Somatic,Hallucination, Tactile,Hallucination, Verbal Auditory,Hallucination, Visual,Hypnagogic Hallucination,Hypnagogic Hallucinations,Hypnapompic Hallucination,Hypnapompic Hallucinations,Kinesthetic Hallucination,Kinesthetic Hallucinations,Mood Congruent Hallucination,Mood Congruent Hallucinations,Mood Incongruent Hallucination,Mood Incongruent Hallucinations,Olfactory Hallucination,Olfactory Hallucinations,Organic Hallucination,Organic Hallucinations,Reflex Hallucination,Reflex Hallucinations,Sensory Hallucination,Sensory Hallucinations,Somatic Hallucination,Somatic Hallucinations,Tactile Hallucination,Tactile Hallucinations,Verbal Auditory Hallucination,Verbal Auditory Hallucinations,Visual Hallucination,Visual Hallucinations
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man