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Reaction Time Indices of Schizophrenic Motivation: A Cross-Cultural Replication

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 January 2018

Gerald Rosenbaum
Gerald Rosenbaum*
Affiliation:
Wayne State University and Lafayette Clinic, Detroit, Michigan
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Extract

Consistent decrements in schizophrenic performance on a reaction time (RT) task obtained by a number of investigators indicate that RT procedures yield reliable indices of schizophrenic deficits in attention (1, 2, 10), motivation (3), preparatory set (8), and psychomotor function (4). In previous studies (6, 7), the writer has presented evidence that these deficits may be attributable to impaired social motivation, in that these RT disturbances can be eliminated in most schizophrenics by activating biological motivation through shocks to the reacting finger. Older, more disorganized patients were unable to improve, however, even with shock motivation. Systematic comparisons of older and younger schizophrenic patients with and without ground privilege status, resulted in the finding that reduced social motivation, lessened reactivity to shock stimulation, and inability to cope with unpredictable anxiety cues constituted relatively independent dimensions of schizophrenic deficit in RT.

Type
Research Article
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 113 , Issue 498 , May 1967 , pp. 537 - 541
Copyright
Copyright © Royal College of Psychiatrists, 1967 

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References

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