Intelligence, Psychopathology and Primary Thinking Disorder in Early Schizophrenia

Eight tests sensitive to the presence of schizophrenic thinking disorder were administered to 54 early schizophrenics and 57 matched neurotic controls. Schizophrenics functioned at significantly inferior levels (p = <.01) on six of the eight tests. However, mean scores indicated test differences too small to be of use diagnostically. Analysis of data in terms of high, medium and low IQ groups revealed that high IQ schizophrenic patients frequently did as well as, and sometimes better than, their neurotic controls on most tests, while low IQ schizophrenics functioned much more poorly than did their neurotic controls. The Rorschach test revealed a pathognomonic diagnostic sign, characteristic mainly of high IQ schizophrenics. The concept of cognitive impairment in schizophrenia would appear to be in need of closer investigation.