Relationship Between Cognitive and Daily Living Functions and Insight in Patients with Schizophrenia

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the relationships between insight, cognition, and daily living functions in patients with schizophrenia. METHOD: Fifty-six clinically stable patients with schizophrenia were evaluated for clinical symptoms using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) and Apathy Evaluation Scale (AES). Self-rated insight was assessed using the Insight Scale for Psychosis (ISP), while the interviewer-rated insight was determined by the PANSS item G12 score. The MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery (MCCB) and the University of California San Diego Performance-based Skills Assessment (UPSA) were used to assess participants' cognitive and daily living functions. We also performed correlation and linear regression analyses. RESULTS: The MCCB's social cognition domain and several UPSA components-communication, comprehension/planning, household skills, and total score-correlated significantly with interviewer-rated insight. In the linear regression analysis, communication and comprehension/planning domains of UPSA significantly predicted interviewer-rated insight after adjusting for additional variables. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrated significant correlations between insight and both cognitive and daily living functions in patients with schizophrenia. Social cognition, communication, and comprehension abilities were associated with insight and should be factored in when implementing rehabilitation, including psychoeducation.