The present study utilized factor analysis to investigate possible underlyi
ng processes in schizophrenic thought disorder. Using the Communication Dis
turbances Index [CDI; Arch. Gen. Psychiatry, 53, (1996) 358], a measure of
disruption in the communication of meaning from speaker to listener, we exa
mined the speech of 58 stable schizophrenia outpatients for six different t
ypes of referential communication disturbances. We calculated instances of
disturbance per 100 words and then factor-analyzed our data using the SAS s
tatistical package. Principal components analysis with an oblique rotation
produced both a two- and a three-factor solution, depending on factor inclu
sion criteria. In the three-factor solution, the first two factors reflecte
d weaknesses in language structural organization and in concept-boundary de
finition, respectively. The third factor appeared to reflect weaknesses in
specific facets of memory functioning. In the two-factor solution, the afor
ementioned structural organization and concept-boundary definition factors
were combined into a single executive functioning factor. Results from the
study may be heuristic in the development of models of language disturbance
in schizophrenia patients. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All righ
ts reserved.