Using dynamic point light display stimuli to assess gesture deficits in schizophrenia.

Pavlidou, Anastasia; Chapellier, Victoria; Maderthaner, Lydia; von Känel, Sofie; Walther, Sebastian (2022). Using dynamic point light display stimuli to assess gesture deficits in schizophrenia. Schizophrenia research. Cognition, 28, p. 100240. Elsevier 10.1016/j.scog.2022.100240

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Background

Gesture deficits are ubiquitous in schizophrenia patients contributing to poor social communication and functional outcome. Given the dynamic nature of social communications, the current study aimed to explore the underlying socio-cognitive processes associated with point-light-displays (PLDs) of communicative gestures in the absence of any other confounding visual characteristics, and compare them to other well-established stimuli of gestures such as pictures by examining their association with symptom severity and motor-cognitive modalities.

Methods

We included 39-stable schizophrenia outpatients and 27-age-gender matched controls and assessed gesture processing using two tasks. The first task used static stimuli of pictures of a person performing a gesture. The limbs executing the gesture were missing and participants' task was to choose the correct gesture from three-options provided. The second task included videos of dynamic PLDs interacting with each other. One PLD performed communicative gestures, while the other PLD imitated/followed these performed gestures. Participants had to indicate, which of the two PLDs was imitating/following the other. Additionally, we evaluated symptom severity, as well as, motor and cognitive parameters.

Results

Patients underperformed in both gesture tasks compared to controls. Task performance for static stimuli was associated with blunted affect, motor coordination and sequencing domains, while PLD performance was associated with expressive gestures and sensory integration processes.

Discussion

Gesture representations of static and dynamic stimuli are associated with distinct processes contributing to poor social communication in schizophrenia, requiring novel therapeutic interventions. Such stimuli can easily be applied remotely for screening socio-cognitive deficits in schizophrenia.

Item Type:

Journal Article (Original Article)

Division/Institute:

04 Faculty of Medicine > University Psychiatric Services > University Hospital of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy
04 Faculty of Medicine > University Psychiatric Services
04 Faculty of Medicine > University Psychiatric Services > University Hospital of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy > Translational Research Center

Graduate School:

Graduate School for Health Sciences (GHS)

UniBE Contributor:

Pavlidou, Anastasia, Chapellier, Victoria Joséphine Bérengère Marie, Maderthaner, Lydia Verena, von Känel, Sofie Amanda, Walther, Sebastian

Subjects:

600 Technology > 610 Medicine & health

ISSN:

2215-0013

Publisher:

Elsevier

Language:

English

Submitter:

Pubmed Import

Date Deposited:

07 Mar 2022 08:23

Last Modified:

17 Aug 2023 08:10

Publisher DOI:

10.1016/j.scog.2022.100240

PubMed ID:

35242609

Uncontrolled Keywords:

Communicative gestures Dynamic stimuli PLD Psychosis Social communication

BORIS DOI:

10.48350/166591

URI:

https://boris.unibe.ch/id/eprint/166591

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