EMOTION PERCEPTION IN SCHIZOPHRENIA - SPECIFIC DEFICIT OR FURTHER EVIDENCE OF GENERALIZED POOR PERFORMANCE

Several studies have investigated the ability of schizophrenics to per ceive facial and vocal emotion in others. Although most suggest that s chizophrenics have an emotion perception deficit, there is little agre ement as to its specific nature. Much of the confusion may be attribut ed to the failure of investigators to use the differential deficit des ign and standardized measures of emotion perception. The present study reexamined the question of an emotion recognition deficit in a sample of 29 unmedicated schizophrenics and 23 normal controls, using facial and vocal emotion identification and discrimination tests that have b een standardized and cross-validated plus two neuropsychological contr ol tests. Results suggested that differences between schizophrenics an d normals on such tasks reflect a generalized performance deficit, rat her than a specific emotion recognition deficit.