COGNITIVE INHIBITION AND POSITIVE SYMPTOMATOLOGY IN SCHIZOTYPY

The negative priming paradigm (Tipper, 1985) was used to investigate t he relationship between 'cognitive inhibition' and symptoms of reality distortion in schizotypy, after previous findings that the negative p riming effect is reduced in both acute schizophrenics and high schizot ypes (Beech, Powell, McWilliam & Claridge, 1989; Beech, Baylis, Smiths on & Claridge, 1989). Following Frith's (1979) model, which suggests t hat the positive symptoms of schizophrenia are due to a failure of the inhibitory processes which normally limit the contents of consciousne ss, it was predicted that negative priming would be inversely correlat ed with levels of positive symptomatology, as measured by the CSTQ (Be ntall, Claridge & Slade, 1989). The results supported the hypothesis, which confirms the usefulness of a symptom-oriented approach as well a s providing some validation for the concept of schizotypy. It was conc luded that high schizotypes, similarly to acute schizophrenics, show a reduction in 'cognitive inhibition', as was predicted by Frith's (197 9) model.